As fuel prices remain high and the Budget looms closer Greenpeace has released a scorecard ranking political parties on practical solutions to cut dependence on imported fossil fuels and shield households from oil and gas price shocks.
Parties were asked nine yes-or-no questions about whether they back concrete measures including cancelling the proposed LNG import terminal, financing rooftop solar, shifting freight from roads onto rail, making public transport free, and restoring EV incentives.
The scorecard revealed starkly different policy responses to the fuel crisis. ACT scored 0 points out of 18, National scored just 1 and NZ First scored 2. Labour sat firmly in the middle scoring a 9, while Te Pāti Māori scored 18, and the Greens and Opportunity scored 16.
“We put parties to test to see who has a plan to take decisive and concrete action to cut energy costs and reduce our dependence on imported fossil fuels,” says Greenpeace campaigner Gen Toop.
“National, ACT, and NZ First flunked the test, with plans to burn more money on mega-roads, and an LNG import terminal. Their abysmal ranking doesn’t bode well for the upcoming Budget,”
“Te Pāti Māori, the Greens, and TOP ranked highly, after giving clear commitments to policies that would deliver homegrown renewables as the cheapest, most secure energy option, alongside electrified public transport and rail.”
“Labour sat in the middle of the ranking. While they often supported the intent of the policy in question, they rarely gave a clear unconditional commitment to actually delivering it,” says Toop.
One of the most striking findings was that all the current governing parties continue to back the proposed LNG import terminal, despite the soaring imported gas prices and widespread warnings against it from a range of experts including the OECD.
‘“Kiwis are already being hit hard at the pump, the supermarket and on their power bills because of expensive, imported fossil fuels. Those same fuels are driving the climate crisis, and supercharging the storms damaging our communities and environment.”
“Building an LNG terminal in the middle of a global gas crisis is like trying to put out a fire with gasoline.”
“Instead of wasting billions on an LNG terminal, the Government should be supporting rooftop solar to reduce household bills, cut climate pollution, and stop further obscene profits flowing to the trillion dollar oil and gas industry at the public’s expense,” says Toop.
Greenpeace points to Australia as an example of effective Government policy on solar. Supported by $11 billion in government incentives, one in three Australian households now has rooftop solar. The New Zealand Government offers no financial support for household solar and only one in every 35 Kiwi homes have it.
“There are proven solutions to the fuel and climate crises already being rolled out around the world, like rooftop solar and free public transport. Our scorecard shows which political parties plan to ramp up those solutions here and which are choosing to double down on fossil fuels.”
National and NZ First were the only two parties that chose not to participate in the scorecard. Their scores were assessed using their public policies and voting records.
Greenpeace has published the scorecard on its website, along with its scoring methodology.
Greenpeace is an independent environmental campaigning organisation and does not take any money from political parties or corporations. It provides independent analysis of political party policies and actions, but does not endorse any political party or tell people how to vote.
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