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Summarised by Centrist
The Free Speech Union has written to Courts Minister Nicole McKee, questioning the decision by the Courts of New Zealand to leave X and establish an account on Bluesky, citing a significant drop in audience reach.
According to the Free Speech Union, the Courts’ X account had approximately 6,200 followers at the time of departure. Its replacement Bluesky account currently has 113 followers. The organisation says this represents a 98% reduction in audience for official court information.
The group claims the move was made without a published rationale, cost-benefit analysis, or ministerial sign-off. It has lodged Official Information Act requests seeking details on when the decision was made, who authorised it, what analysis supported it, and whether political considerations were involved.
Free Speech Union CEO Jillaine Heather said, “Public servants don’t get to pick their audience based on politics,” adding that the public service should not “opt out of platforms because you don’t like the owner.”
She also questioned why taxpayer-funded communications teams would rebuild audiences “from zero on niche platforms when they already had direct access to hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders.”
The Free Speech Union cites the Public Service Act 2020, which requires the public service to facilitate “active citizenship” and foster “open government,” as well as New Zealand’s participation in the Open Government Partnership.
The letter to Minister McKee was sent on 26 March 2026.
