Face of the Day

National has never led a one-term government. The last Labour one was in 1972-75, when the leader and Prime Minister Norman Kirk died in office. New Zealanders normally take time to turn away from our governing masters.

Labour finds itself in the game through a combination of an incumbent’s economy policy that even coalition partner party leader Winston Peters says is not working, stubborn cost-of-living pressures on the public, the implosion of Labour’s frenemy Te Pāti Māori and a possible neutering of the dangers of a limited capital gains tax. [...]

[Labour leader Chris Hipkins said], “New Zealand simply cannot afford three more years of National. We can’t afford the division. We can’t afford the blame and we can’t afford the negativity of this government.” [...]

His deputy, Carmel Sepuloni, in a forceful opening speech, added a Labour word from a recent but distant past: “New Zealand can be fairer, kinder, and more united than it is today.” [...]

Unsurprisingly, Sepuloni sees Hipkins as central to Labour and its supporters overturning the forces of darkness. Against a government she labelled intent on dividing the country, “key to defeating them will be the fact we have a leader in Chris Hipkins who embodies … unity.” [...]

“We must remind Aotearoa that Labour is the party that holds aspiration for all communities and is committed to creating opportunities for all New Zealanders.

“Labour’s story has always been about hope, aspiration, and opportunity.”

Labour talking aspiration.

She returned to the word as she wrapped up.

“Today, I want us to remember that our job is not just to oppose – it is to aspire and inspire. To lift our gaze from the daily headlines and look to the horizon.

Newsroom