English to Become Official Language of New Zealand Under New Government

New Zealand will also scrutinise the impact of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.

(L-R) Winston Peters, leader of New Zealand First party, New Zealand's incoming Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, and David Seymour, leader of the ACT New Zealand party, attend the signing of an agreement to form a three-party coalition government at Parliament in Wellington on Nov. 24, 2023. Marty Melville/AFP via Getty Images

The push to rename New Zealand to “Aotearoa” will cease under the incoming New Zealand (NZ) coalition government, amid a swathe of changes to legislate English as one of the country’s official languages.

At present, English is the most spoken language in New Zealand but is not official, meanwhile, Maori and sign language for the hearing impaired have special status under the law as official languages.