Out With Identity Politics, In With Personal Responsibility: New Zealand Government

ACT leader David Seymour speaks to media on his way to the house following the State Opening of Parliament in Wellington, New Zealand, on Dec. 6, 2023. Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

It has been too long since New Zealanders have been told by leaders that they need to take personal responsibility for their own lives, rather than rely on the government, according to David Seymour, leader of the libertarian ACT Party.

In his State of the Nation address, Mr. Seymour noted that since 1999, New Zealand has not had a conservative government, which has pushed the nation towards the left of the political spectrum.

This resulted in a cultural shift where people increasingly rely on the government to solve their issues, rather than making individual efforts to better their own lives. The ACT is part of a three-party coalition government, along with the traditionally centre-right National Party, and the nationalist NZ First.

“Over the last quarter of a century, the Clark, Key, and Ardern governments have all eroded the simple idea that you are the person that makes the difference in your own life,” Mr. Seymour said.

Former Prime Ministers Helen Clark and Jacinda Ardern led coalition governments under centre-left Labour, while John Key led a coalition government under the centre-right National.

“Since the 1990s, the government has steadily crept further and further into your life. What has been the result?

“Education results are going backwards. One in 10 working-age New Zealanders is on a main [government] benefit. The price of a house is out of reach for most young New Zealanders. Productivity has flatlined.”

Mr. Seymour said the values that originally made New Zealand a great nation were eroded under the previous two left-wing and one centrist governments.

“The most important value is that you can make a difference in your own life, and the lives of those you care about,” he said.

“In fact, you are the only person who can do that.”

He highlighted that leaders, both political and in the community, failed to promote the message of personal responsibility.

Mr. Seymour listed several points, including that hard work, success, and wealth should be celebrated; responsibility should be tied to accepting welfare; making sure children were equipped for school; that business profits were a good thing because it means more for the customer; and that a person who breaks the law is responsible for their actions, and that it is not the fault of their mental health or external factors.

“ACT will continue to proudly defend these values, even if no one else does, because we have to face the root cause of our problems head-on,” Mr. Seymour said, noting the government faced challenges from the local media who gave plenty of publicity for those who opposed traditional values.

Along the same principles, Mr. Seymour said the huge task of tackling the country’s issues started with every individual New Zealander.

Meanwhile, the new national government, which was sworn into office in November 2023, has been working to cut red tape and bureaucracy in areas including employment, gun ownership, farming and agriculture laws, market regulation, and health.

Unwinding Identity Politics

About the Treaty Principles Bill, Mr. Seymour said New Zealand society had become more divided than ever.

The Bill sets to overturn five principles, introduced by the 1989 Labour government, which allowed Maori people to make laws for their people—including setting up a public health service specifically for Maori—and to control natural resources.

The ACT Party wants to replace those principles, with the following three:

• That all citizens of New Zealand have the same political rights and duties;
• That all political authority comes from the people by democratic means; and
• That New Zealand is a multi-ethnic liberal democracy where discrimination based on ethnicity is illegal.

Such a move would effectively erase the race-specific laws for Maori and non-Maori—bringing all groups under the same laws.

“Many of the worst events in history came from group first, individual second, thinking,” Mr. Seymour said.

“ACT is promoting a proper debate on the Treaty principles, and our Treaty Principles Bill would be a law passed by Parliament that says the Treaty says what it means and means what it says.”

It comes after thousands of Maori gathered around New Zealand to oppose the Bill.

The co-leader of the left-wing Maori party, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, labeled the new National-NZ First-ACT coalition “typical white supremists.”

“The reality is we have an anti-Māori government with coalition partners that are using every power so that not only do they know what’s better for us, they know how to design Te Tiriti better for us,” she said.

The central government has already moved to abolish Maori names for every government department except those that specifically deal with Maori issues. For example, reverting “Te Whatu Ora” to Health New Zealand.

The Maori Health Authority, which was established for Maori people to look after the health of their own community, has also been abolished.

These were introduced under the Ardern government, which heavily pushed race-based politics into public discussion and enshrined many into law.

Rex Widerstrom contributed to this report.