Act leader David Seymour ignored the siren used on a megaphone, although Fire and Emergency couldn\u2019t, after being called out to respond to reports of a siren on Auckland\u2019s waterfront.<\/p>\n
Nicole McKee is the new deputy leader of Act. Photo \/ Dean Purcell <\/p>\n
MP Laura McClure acted as MC for the day, proudly announcing associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee as the new deputy leader of the party.<\/p>\n
She replaces Brooke van Velden who is leaving Parliament at the election.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Act Caucus has placed its trust in me, and I am deeply grateful. Together, we are focused on locking Labour out so we can unlock New Zealand\u2019s potential,\u201d said McKee.<\/p>\n
It was revealed after the rally that four MPs put their hands up for the role – a good chunk of the 11-member caucus.<\/p>\n
Seymour said it was a secret vote, but confirmed after questioning there had been four candidates.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you look at this Act caucus, this is the most united, scandal-free caucus that you\u2019ve seen in New Zealand politics this decade. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe do things very carefully to be respectful of each other, and that\u2019s how we hold our team together,\u201d Seymour said.<\/p>\n
McKee\u2019s elevation to deputy means the two MPs at the top of the party are M\u0101ori.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all have equal opportunities, and everybody is treated with the same amount of dignity,\u201d Seymour said when asked how that would sit with the critics who accuse his party of being anti-M\u0101ori.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s something that every New Zealander should strive for, no matter what ethnicity you come from.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a speech peppered with insults at other parties and their MPS, Seymour sung a familiar tune, promising to cut bureaucracy and crack down on beneficiaries.<\/p>\n
All health and disability benefits would be independently issued by Ministry of Social Development-approved pool of designated doctors, something that is optional right now, but Act would make compulsory.<\/p>\n
The party also wants to introduce electronic money management for jobseeker recipients who remain on a benefit for more than four months.<\/p>\n
The card would only allow spending on groceries, rent, childcare and other essentials, with alcohol, gambling, tobacco and cash withdrawals all banned.<\/p>\n
Act Party caucus after its rally in Auckland. Photo \/ Dean Purcell<\/p>\n
The size of government is also in the party\u2019s firing range.<\/p>\n
\u201cNew Zealand has 78 ministerial portfolios, 28 ministers, and 43 departments. Norway has a similar population and runs with 20 ministers across 17 ministries,\u201d Seymour said.<\/p>\n
Under the proposal, 43 departments would become 19 and 28 ministers cut to just 18.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019d be very hard for us to sit in a bloated cabinet again,\u201d Seymour said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2018s our top priority so far, but we\u2019ve got 132 days, and, you know, the Act Party\u2019s never been short of policy,\u201d he told reporters.<\/p>\n
And there\u2019s a warning that chief executives could be removed for specified reasons like non-performance.<\/p>\n
The Public Service Commission would be abolished.<\/p>\n
Asked if that would impact political service neutrality, he said people responsible for spending taxpayer funds should be politically accountable.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo they should be politicised position. If you\u2019re a smart minister, you will appoint the best person to the job because you\u2019re going to need them. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut ultimately, we\u2019ve got to a stage in New Zealand where having a democratically elected person in charge is somehow dirty and, and if you put an unelected person in charge, that\u2019s somehow better.\u201d<\/p>\n
David Seymour at the Act Party pre-election rally in Auckland. Photo \/ Dean Purcell<\/p>\n
He said the caucus accepted that would mean fewer of its MPs being ministers.<\/p>\n
Seymour claimed if Act hadn\u2019t been part of Government, three new taxes would be in place by now.<\/p>\n
But he wouldn\u2019t reveal what those were.<\/p>\n
He also said the LNG terminal was the \u201cleast crazy\u201d of the proposals discussed to relieve the energy crisis.<\/p>\n
Seymour said the rally\u2019s vibe was based on what a good friend had been involved in when she\u2019d lived in Canada and worked with Pierre Poilievre.<\/p>\n
He rejected it was \u201cTrumpian\u201d, saying Act works for all New Zealanders.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had people standing up saying, actually, we\u2019re here for New Zealanders of all backgrounds, whether they just migrated here or they\u2019ve been here for 10 generations,\u201d Seymour said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not sure you\u2019d hear that at one of his (Trump\u2019s) rallies.\u201d<\/p>\n
McKee was warmly welcomed by party supporters.<\/p>\n
\u201cRemember the state has enormous power, but it must use that power carefully. That is why I\u2019m in politics.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seymour used the event to kick off the theme of Act\u2019s early campaign- keeping Labour out and unlocking growth.<\/p>\n
He noted Act had never worked with Labour in any form, and never would.<\/p>\n
He then attacked every other party.<\/p>\n
\u201cHana Haka Party and Te P\u0101ti M\u0101ori, worked with Labour,\u201d Seymour said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe always said they stood for division, now they\u2019ve divided themselves. In half. Three years, six MPs, and the best they could do for M\u0101ori is a haka on TikTok.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen there\u2019s Business Class Chloe from the Greens, who work with Labour. They\u2019ve done about as much for the environment as the M\u0101ori Party have for M\u0101ori.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen there\u2019s Cynical Chris Hipkins and the Labour Party themselves.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s Wily Winnie and New Zealand First. We all know they\u2019ve worked with Labour, especially the Oil and Gas industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s Labour and those who would work with Labour. Who\u2019s left?<\/p>\n
\u201cClever Chris and the National Party. Are they Labour Lite? Maybe. It turns out they can also run left or right.\u201d<\/p>\n
McKee said her job now will be to support Seymour and keep rallying votes before the November 7 election.<\/p>\n
She told the Herald she hoped to be part of team negotiating to get Act back into government after that.<\/p>\n
Emotional video tributes were paid at the rally to van Velden and rural spokesperson Mark Cameron, who is retiring because of illness.<\/p>\n
Cameron was in tears as he thanked everyone.<\/p>\n
Departing Act MP Mark Cameron became emotional as he farewelled the party. Photo \/ Dean Purcell<\/p>\n
Afterwards he told reporters: \u201cI did get emotional.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve loved being part of this group for six years. My kidneys are failing, and, and I\u2019m on dialysis three days a week. <\/p>\n
\u201cI cannot live with consciousness, go to work knowing that I\u2019m being paid by the taxpayer, not doing my job. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I\u2019m deeply moved by that because I\u2019m going to miss this crew, and what a wonderful family to be part of, and I genuinely mean that.\u201d<\/p>\n
His colleagues were also emotional at times.<\/p>\n
Van Velden, who is pregnant, said it had been a privilege to serve as deputy leader over the last six years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI go knowing that we have such a powerful team behind us and I\u2019m so proud of them and I cannot wait to see how things go for the 2026 election.\u201d<\/p>\n
Seymour joked he hoped van Velden\u2019s baby would be easier to manage than the party\u2019s caucus.<\/p>\n
Katie Bradford is a Senior Correspondent at the Herald. She has been a broadcast journalist for over 20 years and was based in the press gallery for 10 years. She specialises in politics, business and Auckland issues.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Act leader David Seymour ignored the siren used on a megaphone, although Fire and Emergency couldn\u2019t, after being…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":499168,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4619,23503,249530,806,3952,1738,249529,4509,2037,176778,5903,118832,2944,117863,6721,48053,111,43,139,69,6662,9061,3111,4762,17526,26639,17093,20420,30331,223,13797,100955,42580],"class_list":["post-499167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-act","tag-acts","tag-americanstyle","tag-as","tag-aucklands","tag-campaign","tag-cavernous","tag-cold","tag-cruise","tag-cry","tag-election","tag-highenergy","tag-inside","tag-kicks","tag-labour","tag-lock","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-off","tag-often","tag-out","tag-party","tag-rallying","tag-shed","tag-ship","tag-supporters","tag-terminal","tag-the","tag-used","tag-warmed","tag-waterfront"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/499167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=499167"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/499167\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/499168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=499167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=499167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=499167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}