Government Services and Administration

• Labour fiscal plan raises its government services spend to $19.61 billion ($9,465 per household), up from $19.37 billion last week.
• Labour would now only reverse half of National's first tranche of public service savings, and all of the second, at a cost of $1.96 billion.
• Labour's mysterious $968 million allowance for policy not yet released is also included here, as is $10.5 million for a Parliamentary Budget Office.

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This page details the election promises related to government services and administration, including:

• defence;
• law, order and justice;
• legislative and regulatory reform;
• other central government administration; and
• regional and local bodies.

Defence

No party has announced a costed defence policy this election.

Law, order and justice

ACT is promising 100,000 hours of extra rural police patrols, which we cost at $25.5 million over four years, alongside a three-strikes law for burglary priced at $191.8 million over four years based on ACT's own estimate of up to 952 additional offenders caught. They are also proposing to roll out 20 noise cameras to catch loud vehicles, for $2 million. Combined, ACT's law and order commitments come to $219.3 million.

The National Party has costed 50 new police recruits as part of establishing a dedicated Auckland Transport Police Team at a cost of $28 million over four years.

Labour and the Greens and NZ First have not announced costed policies in this area.

Legislative and regulatory reform

Labour has pledged to reinstate the pay equity regime. Using Treasury's own projected cost, we put this at $10.97 billion over four years, or $5,295 per household. Labour's plan funds only the $4-an-hour pay rise for care and support workers, about a quarter of that, and says future settlements will be paid for in future Budgets. They have also proposed an independent review of Fire and Emergency New Zealand, costed at $3.9 million.

NZ First would hold a referendum on the Māori seats. Based on the $12.9 million cost of the 2020 cannabis and euthanasia referendums, adjusted for inflation, we cost this at $16.6 million over four years.

The Opportunity Party's clean up politics package is costed at $208 million over four years. It also proposes a Parliamentary Citizen Assembly ($8 million) and a Parliamentary Commissioner for Citizen Vote ($1.6 million). Together these come to $217.6 million. Labour and the Greens have also proposed lobbying registers and restrictions on political donations. We have costed each at $48 million over four years, using Opportunity's 'clean up politics' costings minus the cost of the anti-corruption body.

ACT's climate change reforms, taken as a whole, total an estimated $413 million. This includes $407 million from returning ETS auction receipts to households, $65 million for restoring higher industrial allocations, and a $59.2 million saving from scrapping the Zero Carbon Act, which includes the abolition of the Climate Change Commission.

Both ACT and NZ First would end the Waitangi Tribunal. ACT would disestablish it once historical claims are complete, and NZ First would replace it with a commission to finish outstanding claims. In both cases the work continues under another name, so we have assumed no net saving over the forecast period.

National's MMP referendum would cost $16.6 million.

Other central government administration

The Greens' policy to lift core public service pay is the largest item on this page. Assuming a ten percent pay hike, applying this across the $38.8 billion public sector wage bill, we cost this at $15.5 billion over four years, or $7,490 per household.

Labour would reverse part of National's planned public service savings: half of the first tranche and all of the second. Its fiscal plan costs this at $1.96 billion over four years. The plan also sets aside $968 million for policy not yet announced and funds a Parliamentary Budget Office at $10.5 million. We have included their public sector living wage pledge, which Living Wage Aotearoa estimate at $100 million, and a dedicated Office of AI and AI online safety regulator at $29.2 million.

Labour has pledged to progressively lift foreign aid towards 0.7 percent of Gross National Income, but has put no cost or date on it. We have assumed a progressive increase from current levels to 0.7 percent by the fourth year, which costs $5.5 billion over four years, or $2,662 per household. We would welcome Labour sharing its own costing, which so far it has publicly refused to do.

NZ First has promised to increase KiwiSaver contributions to 8%. We have estimated the Crown's costs as employer would cost $6.3 billion over four years. NZ First has also costed a COVID-19 vaccine inquiry at $15.4 million, assuming the cost is an average of the phases 1 and 2 of the Royal Commission.

ACT's ban on spiritual practices in the public service is expected to save $14 million over four years, assuming 10 percent of staff at each agency are affected.

The Opportunity Party would spend $40 million boosting the Electoral Commission and $8 million establishing an Independent Policy Costing Unit.

National's sole announcement in this category, completing the new police station in Greymouth, is already funded under Budget 2026 and carries no additional cost.

Regional and local bodies

No party has announced costed policies in this category this election.

Note: Te Pāti Māori has announced a $200 million Takatāpui Commission ($97 per household). We have not yet included Te Pāti Māori in the Bribe-O-Meter as most of their policy statements remain uncostable.

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