“The Prime Minister is reshuffling deckchairs on the Titanic. This Government has collided with the iceberg of reality and it’s going down not just because of the faces in Cabinet, but because of its policies and its direction,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.
“The first order of the day is Poto to go. She has been a disaster in the Police portfolio and crime is out of control under her watch. Nanaia Mahuta also needs to be dropped from the Local Government portfolio and her divisive Three Waters work so she can bring some focus back to her ailing Foreign Affairs portfolio.
"Kris Faafoi needs to leave behind the mess he's created at Immigration New Zealand. The department is Faafed and whoever inherits it has a huge mess to clean up.
“You know things are spread thin when poor old Chris Hipkins is left to deal with both the COVID crisis and our failing education sector.
“It’s good the Prime Minister has recognised that what she’s doing isn’t working and that change is desperately needed. What she needs now is real change.
“ACT is willing to offer the Government some of our talent to restore some competence and ability to the Beehive.
“We would give them a Finance Minister with a fully costed alternative budget ready to go that would reel in spending to kill inflation dead, reduce taxes so hardworking families can deal with the prices rises they face already, and make strategic investments across housing, defence and education.
“Brooke van Velden would implement the best mental health policy of any party, creating a world-class commissioning agency that assesses individual needs and contracts the best providers for a person’s therapy and care.
“Nicole McKee would put the focus on victims of crime by cracking down on gangs with practical policies that hit them where they hurt – their wallets.
“Simon Court has a no-nonsense politically sustainable climate policy ready to go. He would also enact ACT’s Water Infrastructure Plan which acts as an alternative to Three Waters and is actually focussed on the objective of better water instead of a clandestine pseudo treaty settlement.
“Dr James McDowall would increase our defence spending to put us in line with our allies and protect us in a dramatically changing geopolitical environment.
“Chris Baillie is a former youth aid police officer who has successfully worked with troubled youth and would bring real life experience to the serious issue of ram raids. He also has the Teaching Excellence Reward Fund (TERF) policy that would give deserved pay rises to our best teachers.
“Karen Chhour has lived at the hands of Oranga Tamariki and is ready to reform it, to ensure the wellbeing of the child comes before any other consideration and our most vulnerable children have the best chance in life.
“Mark Cameron is a genuine farmer who brings a practical understanding of agriculture to parliament. He knows the challenges the sector faces and would address them head on.
“Toni Severin would bring in the ‘no rehab no parole’ to prevent re-offending and give people a better chance of turning their lives around.
“Damien Smith would reduce Government debt by $8 billion just like that by extending the Mixed Ownership Model to all SOEs, while also driving productivity by applying market discipline to firms and provides cash for government debt repayment and reassuring those skeptical of privatisation that the majority stake remains in public hands.
“We would even sort the housing mess out for the Government, with Brooke van Velden enacting her GST-sharing scheme that would provide an enduring and practical solution for infrastructure funding
“ACT has the people and policies ready to go. Labour clearly don’t. We need real change.”