On behalf of the New Zealand Centre for Political Research I would like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year!
I’d also like to thank you most sincerely for your ongoing interest in our work and contribution over the years.
As you know, it is only through the wonderful generosity of our supporters that the NZCPR is able to inform public opinion, influence decision‑makers, and help shape the future direction of New Zealand.
Next year will be our 21st year of operation. The independent think-tank that I set up as a grassroots operation after nine years as a member of parliament has grown into a vibrant free-speech and information-sharing network that not only includes our NZCPR.com website, but an X account, the influential Breaking Views blog, and our very active NZCPR Facebook Group with over 30,000 members.
Through our in-depth research and analysis, the NZCPR provides New Zealanders with insight and knowledge they can trust. By avoiding paywalls, subscriptions, and advertising, we ensure our information is widely available and our platforms are readily accessible as a supportive environment in which to debate the key political issues of the day.
This will become even more important next year as the powerful enemies of freedom and democracy go into overdrive to silence opposing voices so they can dominate the national debate and influence the outcome of the election.
Also, 2026 will also see a continuation of our long-running Coastal Claims Campaign, as we seek to ensure the coalition’s amended Marine and Coastal Area Act works as parliament intended, with Customary Marine Title awards covering only a minority of claims in remote areas, and not the whole coast.
We remain concerned, however, that since the amendment act did not remove “tikanga” from the law, that judges may still find in favour of most claimants.
Accordingly, we will engage in the first claim being retried under the new law so we can assess first-hand whether it is working as intended. If not, we will escalate our call for the repeal of the Marine and Coastal Area Act and the restoration of Crown ownership through the 2004 Foreshore and Seabed Act.
Our Treaty Book Campaign continues at pace. We are now ready for our fifth print run of Sir Āpirana Ngata’s brilliant explanation of the Māori version of the Treaty of Waitangi – Te Tiriti o Waitangi – with tens of thousands more copies distributed this year. His ‘explanation’ clearly shows the truth: the claims by Treaty activists that Te Tiriti promised a ‘partnership’ is a complete and utter fabrication.
As you know, exposing the tribal takeover has been a main focus of our work in recent years. We believe the extent to which it pervades the state sector, and is increasingly being adopted by woke businesses, warrants our constant attention – moreso given most other research and policy groups are turning a blind eye.
The agenda of the tribal elite is profoundly subversive. Without any mandate whatsoever from the public, a covert operation is underway to take over our country by stealth. With radicalised supporters embedded throughout the public service, the courts, academia and the media, a transfer of power is being advanced to enact Labour’s He Puapua blueprint for the tribal control of New Zealand by 2040 – despite Labour being booted out of office over two years ago.
Although the coalition government made a specific pledge to “Stop all work on He Puapua” and stated that “ending race-based policies” was a priority, the framework for tribal control not only remains firmly in place – but is now being strengthened through major new legislation that will further expand and entrench special rights for Māori.
The coalition’s much‑heralded replacement for the Resource Management Act – the Planning Bill and the Natural Environment Bill – appear to give iwi a far more extensive and formalised role than they had under the RMA. If this turns out to be the case, it risks locking in tribal control over development and resource use in New Zealand for the foreseeable future.
In other words, through their RMA replacement legislation, the coalition, it seems, will deliver yet another milestone on this country’s journey towards tribal control.
This is totally unacceptable. Next year, we are planning a major campaign to force the removal of race-based rights in the legislation. If National has been captured by the tribal elite and refuses to budge, we will try to convince New Zealand First and ACT to pledge to remove it – if they are re-elected in the next government.
As if all of this is not bad enough, the generously taxpayer-funded Waitangi Tribunal has just released yet another radicalised report – this time claiming that Northern tribes did not cede sovereignty. They further argue the Crown has breached multiple Treaty ‘principles’ including ‘partnership’ agreements, and they have called for the return of all Crown land, yet more compensation, and the widespread reform of New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements.
By issuing reports that rewrite history and erode the foundations of our democracy, the Waitangi Tribunal has become a major destabilising force in this country that should now be abolished.
Furthermore, demands for constitutional reform that aim to elevate judges into the position of New Zealand’s supreme lawmakers instead of parliament, should not only be countered, but crushed.
The 2026 election will be a game-changer. If the coalition retains support, they will consolidate the work they have started and – we hope – through strong NZCPR advocacy, will adopt the crucial legislative changes we have identified will be needed to permanently avert a tribal takeover.
On the other hand, if the toxic trio of Labour, the Greens and the Māori Party win the election, it will be a disaster. They will empower He Puapua and, with the framework already in place, the tribal takeover will enter its final phase.
If that happens, New Zealand will need – more than ever before – groups like the NZCPR, to help lead a fight back.
It’s our view that those of us who call New Zealand home have two choices. We either stand up and fight for the principles of freedom and democracy, or we do nothing and let the radicals win.
We say doing nothing is not an option! [...]
Thanks again for your interest and support – and best wishes to you and your family for a great Christmas and New Year!
This article was originally published by the New Zealand Centre for Political Research.
