Greens “for all of us”, yeah right

“Imagine an election where party leaders gleefully tell law abiding citizens to leave the country. Marama Davidson did just that this morning, showing the Greens aren’t really campaigning ‘for all of us.’ Their slogans are hollow,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“Last night at a public meeting in Rotorua, a successful business owner and employer of hundreds asked me to tell the Greens that if they got into Government and enacted their policies, he would face around half a million dollars in additional tax and would leave the country.

“Most people in Davidson’s position would have acknowledged a basic political value first. All citizens have a right to be live in this country. The Greens are campaigning ‘for all of us,’ after all. But no, she gleefully shouted ‘ka kite’ to the person without even being interested in how many he employed or any other detail.

“Davidson’s response beggars’ belief. The person who put the question to me runs a business built up over decades that employs hundreds of people. The Greens are reckless and dangerous to our future prosperity.

“This election is a choice between a party with the ambition for New Zealand to grow, create wealth and become a land of opportunity. Other parties are happy to see successful people take their investment, businesses and jobs somewhere else.

“Behind every successful business are employees, suppliers, customers, investment and families whose incomes depend on that business succeeding. Their livelihoods would be up in smoke as well thanks to the Greens.

“What makes this extraordinary is that the Greens aren't hiding their ambition to control the country’s finances. Their co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has openly said she wants to be Finance Minister, and that they plan to spend more money and pile more debt on to Kiwis.

“As well as ruling out the finance position, Chris Hipkins should rule out Marama Davidson from Cabinet. New Zealand cannot afford to have people around the Cabinet table who so casually endanger the country’s prosperity.

“ACT will be campaigning like crazy to stop them. We want successful people to stay here. We want people to invest here, start businesses here, employ people here, and build their lives here. We want New Zealand to be a country people choose to come to, not one where politicians cheer as taxpayers head for the departure lounge.

“If the Greens’ economic message is ‘ka kite’ to successful New Zealanders, the result will be ka kite to investment, ka kite to jobs, and ka kite to higher wages.

“That is what is at stake this election. New Zealand needs more wealth creation, not politicians who resent the people creating it. Party Vote ACT to lock Labour and its allies out and unlock New Zealand’s potential.”

Note to editors: The clip referenced is here from 4.03 onwards.