Election 2023 live updates: Christopher Luxon on candidate Ryan Hamilton’s anti-fluoride comments
National Party leader Christopher Luxon has been grilled on a National Party candidate’s anti-fluoridation and anti-mandate position.
Ryan Hamilton, favoured to win the Hamilton East electorate, has voiced support for groups that spread misinformation about fluoridation.
Luxon said the comments were old and “utterly wrong,” and don’t reflect his current views.
“I think the comments are from maybe about a decade ago ... they were entirely inappropriate and he was wrong,” Luxon said.
“He subsequently apologised for those remarks and our position on fluoride is very much aligned with the Government, which is that we have supported the government moving fluoride management from local councils to the Director General [of Health].”
Hamilton has been contacted for a response. Luxon denied the party was hiding Hamilton from media, saying he would follow up on when Hamilton would be available to comment.
Luxon claimed Hamilton had since changed his views to align with the party’s. He also warned no one would go into Parliament if their past views were scrutinised in such a way.
In August, National issued a press release attacking Labour minister Dr Deborah Russell for public comments she made on tax that conflicted with the party’s current positions.
Challenged whether he was being hypocritical, Luxon disagreed and said Russell’s role as associate finance minister meant her former views on tax were more relevant.
“I would suggest he’s not an expert on fluoridation,” Luxon said of Hamilton, who had been a Hamilton City councillor since 2018.
Luxon said it was his understanding that Hamilton was fully vaccinated but had advocated for people who were not to be able to access council buildings at a time when that was not allowed under the mandates.
The campaign trail will heat up today as Luxon and Labour leader Chris Hipkins prepare to go head-to-head in the first live debate of the election tomorrow night.
STORY CONTINUES AFTER LIVEBLOG
The ‘accidental’ Māori: Winston Peters slams David Seymour
Royce
Winston Peters, the leader of NZ First, has slammed David Seymour, questioning his ‘Māori-ness’ and the Act leader’s commitment to Māori causes.
In an interview with Moana Maniapoto on Te Ao with Moana, Peters said: “David Seymour discovered his Māori-ness the same way Columbus discovered America, purely by accident.”
Peters, who’s hoping to usher NZ First back into government at the upcoming general election, spent much of the interview emphasising his party’s significance and avoiding questions about other political entities, but when pressed on Seymour, he fired back.
Read the full story here:
National candidate claims party raised no red flags about anti-fluoride, anti-mandate comments
Royce
National’s Hamilton East candidate Ryan Hamilton says no red flags were raised by the party regarding his historical comments opposing water fluoridation and Covid-19 vaccine mandates.
Hamilton told the Herald his opposition to using fluoride, which included saying it was pointless because “most lower socio economics fill their tap water with Raro”, was not raised during the candidate selection process.
His views on the approach to Covid-19, which included opposing restricting unvaccinated people from council buildings and claiming coroner reporting was seemingly used to “inflate death numbers for the propaganda machine” were addressed but no one from the party was concerned, Hamilton claimed.
Read the full story here:
On the Campaign: Fluoride controversy, debate prep and Act's hijacked party launch
Natasha Gordon
What really happened in the room at Act's hijacked campaign launch? What have the leaders said about a fluoride controversy involving a candidate? And how are they prepping for the debate tomorrow?
Listen to all the latest from today's elections news with On the Campaign, the Herald's daily election podcast.
The Front Bench - Heather du Plessis-Allan, Barry Soper, Phil O’Reilly, Richard Hills on big political issues
Natasha Gordon
To cut through the spin, join Newstalk ZB’sThe Front Bench, a weekly broadcast to get to the heart of the issues that matter most.
Christopher Luxon confirms Ryan Hamilton to remain as National candidate
Natasha Gordon
Luxon, at a media conference on Monday, appeared not to be aware of Hamilton’s more recent anti-fluoride comment from 2016.
Read the full story here:
Chris Hipkins to discuss poor dental care and it's impact on the health system
Natasha Gordon
Chris Hipkins has arrived at the Tauranga Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.
He will discuss with experts the issues and research around poor dental care and its impact on the health system.
Winston Peters takes aim at Australian-owned banks
Natasha Gordon
Peters’ experience as Treasurer (assuming most of the key roles of the Finance Minster including delivering a budget) in the final term of the Bolger Government was a persistent theme.
He was unhappy at being left out of a finance debate in Queenstown last week, sponsored by Australian-owned ASB.
“Doesn’t ask a guy from NZ First!” Peters said to the crowd, adding he was the only one who knew how to run the economy, having shepherded New Zealand through the Asian Financial Crisis as Treasurer, although Peters left the government midway through.
He took aim at the Australian-owned banks.
“Ned Kelly is not over here with his banks being a charity,” Peters said.
He said New Zealand had not had banking inquiries like those in Australia, although Peters was part of the 2017-2020 Labour-led government that launched a conduct and culture inquiry into banks. The current government has begun a market study into banking.
Peters recycled some of his greatest hits speaking to a crowd of supporters on Wellington’s Kapiti Coast.
He took aim at private of the local airport, referenced the 1990s Winebox Inquiry, and complained at being left out of debates and media interviews.
Peters was particularly unhappy at not being included in a new RNZ series “Grilled” in which the leaders of National, Labour, the Greens, and Act cook with RNZ host Charlotte Cook.
RNZ’s website said that NZ First was asked to participate, but declined.
“I found that one of our mainstream media outlets is going to have a cooking programme on… paid for by you!” Peters said.
“They’re taking the four leaders and they’re going to have a cooking lesson - in a cost of living crisis? What planet are they on?” he said to a chairing crowd.
Hipkins tells Destiny Church 'to get out of the way of democracy'
Natasha Gordon
On tomorrow night's debate, Hipkins would not give away his plan. "I have not spent a huge amount of time preparing for the debate," he said, but he would focus on it later today and tomorrow.
He said he had not done a dress rehearsal scenario that involved a fake Christopher Luxon filling in.
"I would encourage the Destiny Church, in particular, to get out of the way of democracy."
On the protesters at Act's conference, he said he urged the Freedoms group to let other political parties have their say. "I would encourage the Destiny Church, in particular, to get out of the way of democracy."He had not got on the phone to leader Brian Tamaki, saying he did not think Tamaki would have any interest in such a conversation with him.
Hipkins is being pressed about a Labour list candidate who has apparently been posting conspiracy theories about the HPV vaccine.
List candidate Deborah Rhodes was the person in question.
Hipkins speaks on Ryan Hamilton's anti-fluoride comments
Natasha Gordon
Hipkins said Ryan Hamilton's previous anti-fluoride comments are for Luxon to answer for.
He said it was a matter for Luxon whether to act against Ryan Hamilton, but "he's set very high standards for others" and it was up to him to decide whether to adhere to the same standards.
Hipkins said Ryan Hamilton's views aligned with conspiracy theories.
He said politicians should be allowed to change their minds over time, but people with conspiracist views often don't change their opinions.
'Ambitious and deliverable': Meghan Woods commits to solar panels for Kāinga Ora homes
Natasha Gordon
Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins said New Zealanders deserve to know what the National Party would cut to pay for their "unaffordable tax plan."
Labour housing spokesperson Meghan Woods said she is committing to solar panels for an extra 1000 Kāinga Ora homes.
"It is ambitious and deliverable."
"We can build resilience in our neighbourhoods," Woods said of trying to find ways to build homes against extreme weather events.
"We do have to ensure we're not just benefiting our tenants," Woods said.
Woods said there is a huge incentive for wind and solar to be part of the future, and there is a project underway at looking how to store energy when it is, for example, not sunny or windy.
Woods said it's not just individual homes that benefit from solar power and there's a wide public benefit for more environmentally friendly electricity.
"If we're going to decarbonise, we need to make sure we've got efficient homes."
Woods said there will be a capped amount of money for households for solar panels.
Woods said the Labour party is out and about talking to people every day, and that it showed their ambition to win.
"Elections aren't about coming up with Aces up the sleeve, it's about hard work."
The funding period for Labours solar policy is over four years.
Hipkins said for families who get solar on their roof it can be a "game-changer" for their electricity bills.
Hipkins said overtime the lifetime of owning a solar panel, families will likely save money on power bills despite the sometimes high upfront costs of the panels.
Hipkins said there was still a large group of undecided voters out there, and that's what campaigns were for.
Winston Peters welcomed at Paraparaumu public meeting
Natasha Gordon
NZ First leader Winston Peters has told his supporters that pressure on National leader Christopher Luxon to rule him out of a National government is an attempt to get ahead of the election result.
“They [the media] don’t care what you think - they want to decide,” Peters said.
Going further, Peters appeared to rule himself into a future National government, only half joking that he might be called upon to be Luxon’s finance minister.
Peters seized upon the apparent hole in National’s tax plan and the pledge of finance spokeswoman Nicola Willis to resign if she could not deliver tax cuts.
“Could be a chance here to have a decent minister of finance,” Peters said with a wry smile.
Chris Hipkins visits Kāinga Ora development in Pāpāmoa
Natasha Gordon
Labour leader Chris Hipkins is visiting a Kāinga Ora development in Pāpāmoa to mark the completion of 41 public houses.
Hipkins said building public homes was in Labour's "DNA". There had been 13,000 added since Labour came into government in 2017 and another 4000 were currently being built.
Resident Priscilla Wielders said moving into a Kāinga Home in March had "changed my life". Her husband is disabled and in a wheelchair and their new home was designed to fully accessible for him.
She said Labour had "clearly delivered" on its promises to build public homes, though she said she was still undecided who to vote for.
Nicola Willis feels the heat for not being a 'local' in Ōhāriu
Natasha Gordon
National's deputy leader has been targeted in an election debate on Newstalk ZB for not living in the electorate she's hoping to win.
Nicola Willis today faced off against Labour's Greg O'Connor and The Opportunities Party's Jessica Hammond on Wellington Mornings with Nick Mills.
O'Connor is the current MP forŌhāriu and is hoping to hold on to it this election, saying "it's all about local".
"There's no place like Ōhāriu, you've got to get to know the people in every part of it. And I live here.
"Hammond echoed that sentiment.
"People know I'm a real local from the community, that my heart is in the right place and that I'm standing here because I love our community.
"It's my community, it's my children's community and no one is going to care about our community more than someone who has chosen to live here - not because it's a winnable seat, but because I feel a deep love and connection to it."
Willis lives in Karori, which is part of the Wellington Central electorate, where she has stood in the past. This is the first election she's campaigned for Ōhāriu.
But the National high-flier fired her own shot back, saying the electorate needs a politician who's influential and can get things done.
She pointed to Johnsonville Mall as an example of a lack of progress in the area, and how politicians have promised for years and years to get something done but have failed.
Willis said her team had knocked on 10,000 doors already and the number one issue for voters was the cost of living and how unaffordable mortgages had become, followed by a real concern about congestion and the need for better investment in infrastructure.
She highlighted National's pledge to build a road from Grenada to Petone to ease congestion and unlock new housing opportunities.
Hipkins arrives at Mangatawa Papamoa Blocks
Natasha Gordon
Chris Hipkins arrives at the Mangatawa Papamoa Blocks. The community housing uses renewable energy to generate electricity.
Chris Hipkins with Jan Tinetti (Labour education spokesperson), and Megan Woods (Labour housing spokesperson).
Tenant Rhapsody Cooper said her power bill had gone from $800 a month to $25 with the solar power panels.
"The kids have noticed it and are on board now I can spend more money on groceries, I love it.
"I have 16 panels on my 4-bedroom home. Now I can run my drier all day it's awesome."
Woods said it was all about people affording their power bills and the block was part of its pilot scheme.
We want to build future generations.
Other whanau members said not having to worry about big power bills had removed so much stress from their lives and hardship.
Coalition collision: The policy tensions between National and Act
Oskar Alley
National is not Act and Act is not National. Audrey Young looks at where the tensions could lie in any coalition negotiations. (Premium)
Read the full story here:
Luxon on mental health and maximising National vote
Natasha Gordon
"We are going to have a dedicated minister for mental health."
"Why don't we remove the money from the centre, outwards?" Luxon said, suggesting his government would support groups like Gumboot Friday.
"Why wouldn't we want to scale them up, power them up to get better results?".
"I am only focused on maximising the National vote," said Luxon, who would not confirm whether or not he will work with NZFirst.
"I am not thinking about NZFirst."
"They are not a consideration," Luxon said of NZ First.
He said his focus would be on forming a government after the election in an MMP environment - "as National with support from Act."
He said National would not undertake asset sales.
Our position is we are not entertaining or thinking about asset sales."
Preparing for first Leaders' Debate
Natasha Gordon
Luxon said he was "pretty relaxed" about his first debate tomorrow night. He had done some debates at school, but it was his first big political debate.
"Chris Hipkins is a champion university debater," Luxon said.
He maintained Hipkins was "the best debater in Parliament" but said he may have upset his own champion debater, Chris Bishop, with that comment.
Luxon played down his own debating skills but said New Zealanders weren't looking for a debater from a new leader.
Luxon on other topics
Natasha Gordon
Luxon criticised Grant Robertson and Deborah Russell for changing their views on GST on fruit and vegetables.
Luxon said he did not believe the government had worked well enough with community organisations or business to deliver services.
He said National would honour the agreements entered into with big corporates on emissions reductions measures, but would not enter new ones going on. He said such organisations had large profits and should do it themselves.
He said renewable energy measures had to be accelerated by making them easier to put in place. National wanted to double renewable energy.
That could be done by speeding up consenting times, for example.
He had not seen the detail of Labour's new announcement on solar energy subsidies.
"We need to play our role in government, which is done by speeding up consenting."
"Like Labour most things are in the detail and like Labour most things don't get delivered."
Asked if all state houses should have solar panels, he said the focus should be on building state houses rather than solar panels.
"We need to build more state houses."
Luxon said only people with minor offences should be let on bail, but wouldn't outline specific policy yet.
"The RMA reforms have been a debacle."
"We will unwind the RMA reforms."
He has police protection during the campaign, as the leader of the Opposition, but said prior to that coming on he had felt safe.
Luxon said rolling out an EV charging network across the country was important to increase EV purchases.
'Utterly wrong': Luxon says Ryan Hamilton has apologised
Natasha Gordon
Luxon said National candidate Ryan Hamilton's former comments were old and "utterly wrong," and don't reflect his current views.
"I think the comments are from maybe about a decade ago," Luxon said.
"Our position in the National Party is very clear, we are pro-fluoride."
"His comments are wrong, inappropriate, he has apologised."
"He has changed his position subsequent to those remarks."
Luxon said it wasn't hypocritical to have Ryan Hamilton as an MP in the party after the party criticised Deborah Russell previously.
"They're all individual circumstances."
"If everyone had to have a perfect record we wouldn't have anyone in parliament."
Luxon did not know if Hamilton was available to interview and why he was ignoring some media's requests.
'Something has to be done': Luxon meets clients at North Shore Budget service
Natasha Gordon
National leader Christopher Luxon has arrived at the North Shore Budget Service and spoken with a young couple who are struggling with the high cost of living.
Service staff told Luxon the number of people engaging their services had increased four-fold in recent months as prices of fuel and food rose.
The couple, Vanu and Esther Rea, had moved over from Cairns, Australia and couldn’t believe how expensive living in New Zealand was.
“Something has to be done,” Vanu told Luxon.
The National leader was attentive, asking the couple many questions about how they were planning on making ends meet with a 1-year-old and a baby on the way.
Labour is promising $4000 grants for people to install solar power in their homes
Natasha Gordon
Labour is promising $4000 grants for people to install solar power in their homes, if re-elected.
It is expecting the policy to double solar power uptake in the country, adding another 60,000 installations over four years at a cost of $218 million.
It expects installing solar power will save households up to 50 per cent in electricity bills, or about $850 annually.
Labour is also pledging $20m over four years for community projects and to fit out 1000 Kāinga Ora homes a year with solar panels, the latter costed at $18m a year.
The policy is similar to the Green Party’s Clean Power Payment, which includes up to $6000 for solar installations, along with also installing solar in Kāinga Ora homes.
“We need to increase renewable electricity generation by 68 per cent by 2050. Solar on roofs lowers bills, as well as generating electricity locally, reducing reliance on the grid,” Labour leader Chris Hipkins said.
Read the full story here:
Anti-fluoride, anti-mandate National candidate
Sophie Ryan
The National Party candidate favoured to win the Hamilton East electorate held views directly opposed to the party’s leader on fluoridation of water and vaccine mandates.
Read more below:
Close eye on GDP data
Sophie Ryan
The political parties will be keeping a close eye on the GDP data that will be released on Thursday to paint a picture of the state of the economy.
Liam Dann's spoken to senior economists to get their view on whether we're out of recession.
Deep-dive into National and Act policy
Sophie Ryan
Senior Political Correspondent Audrey Young has taken a close look at the policy from the two parties and where any tensions could lie for the possible coalition.
Campaign heats up ahead of first debate
Sophie Ryan
The campaign trail will heat up today as Luxon and Hipkins prepare for the first leaders' debate. The two major party leaders are going head-to-head in the live leaders' debate on TVNZ 1 tomorrow at 7pm.
Luxon in Auckland, Hipkins in Tauranga
Sophie Ryan
Another week of campaigning kicks off today with events around the country. We'll have live coverage this morning as Christopher Luxon visits North Shore and Chris Hipkins is in Tauranga. Elsewhere, Winston Peters is holding an event in Kapiti Coast.
STORY CONTINUES
Labour accuses Act of using Māori as political punching bag
Hipkins believes the Act Party is using Māori as a political punching bag as leader David Seymour made his opposition to co-governance a central theme of his campaign launch.
It’s a claim Seymour strongly denies, while Luxon doesn’t “necessarily” think Seymour is stoking division between Māori and Pākehā with his public comments on co-governance.
Any messages Seymour hoped to impress upon the public were partially drowned out by the disruption caused by Vision NZ Panmure-Ōtāhuhu candidate Karl Mokaraka, who shouted at Seymour while the party leader was making his speech at the Civic Theatre in Auckland.
Mokaraka had to be forcibly removed, but during his protest, in which he urged Seymour not to forget about South Auckland, some Act supporters obstructed media from taking photos and videos, with one camera operator having his face pinched and being struck on the top of his head with a cardboard sign.
Seymour apologised for the behaviour and said the party would co-operate with any investigation into the incident. Any people found guilty of assault would be kicked out of the party, Seymour said.
He also said further questions would be asked regarding how Mokaraka entered the venue given the security precautions taken, and whether more security would be required at future events.
Mokaraka earned headlines when he popped up over a fence to disrupt one of Luxon’s media stand-ups recently.
Seymour’s disrupted speech to the roughly 800 people in attendance covered a range of topics, but one highlighted was the party’s opposition to co-governance and Act’s desire to define the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Act intended to legislate the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi through a Treaty Principles Act before putting it to a binding referendum.
That’s despite Luxon earlier ruling out having such a referendum under a National-led government. Act is likely to be National’s support partner if the two parties gain enough support to form a government following the October 14 election.
The party wanted to repeal legislation that gave “different rights based on ethnicity”, including the Māori Health Authority and the Water Services legislation, formerly known as Three Waters.
Act would also “re-orientate the public service towards a focus on equal opportunity” by removing any “racial targeting”.
Seymour denied he was stoking fear and division through his comments on the topic, claiming it was an important issue for Kiwis.
In a media stand-up today, Luxon didn’t believe Seymour was directly inflaming the race relations debate and wouldn’t provide direct answers on his thoughts on Act’s co-governance policies.
However, he did state his belief that governments were obliged to explain the application of a country’s founding documents.
“There’s lots of different interpretations of the Treaty - I think that’s been some of the division, and I think as a government, it’s incumbent upon you to actually make the case for how, where we’re going.
“On co-governance, I haven’t observed that ... [Labour hasn’t] made the case for what they’re trying to do by bringing co-governance into the delivery of public services.
“If you’ve got a big mandate, make your case, take the New Zealand people with you on constitutional issues. When you don’t do it, you end up with division.”
Luxon, in Palmerston North today, visited a driving range and the Gurudwara Shri Fateh Sahib Sikh place of worship in Palmerston North with candidate Ankit Bansal.
He also spoke at a public meeting in central Palmerston North, an electorate held by Labour since 1975, but which is typically much closer with regard to party votes split between the two major parties.
About 250 people were present and Luxon was pressed on his party’s policies, including tertiary education funding, transport emissions and working with community housing providers.
Meanwhile, Labour on Sunday unveiled its Women’s Manifesto - a compilation of mostly already promised policies.
One of those was to extend the age of free breast cancer screening from 69 to 74 - a pledge first proposed by the party in 2017, and which it has faced criticism for not implementing. Labour has also already supported a Members’ Bill on the issue from National health spokesman Dr Shane Reti.
National had the same policy, announced last year.
Labour has previously said ICT issues and staffing were barriers to extending it.
The manifesto also included making cervical screening services free between the ages of 25 to 69 years, saving up to $100 in co-payments.
Labour is also pledging to implement a national endometriosis action plan, establish an innovation and entrepreneurship scholarship programme for low-middle income women, “modernise” consent laws and introduce gender pay gap reporting.
During his media stand-up, Hipkins confirmed he did consider Seymour’s comments akin to using Māori as a political punching bag, while continuing to highlight it was the 18th day National had refused to publish the costings of its foreign buyers’ tax.
Act was campaigning on scrapping the Ministry for Women. Senior Labour MP Jan Tinetti said she was “horrified” at Act’s stance and said it would be “catastrophic”, given the work staff had done informing the women’s health strategy and putting a gender lens to the programme designed to reduce family and sexual violence.