Green Party cost breakdown

Week 6 update:

• The Greens’ ‘A Job for Every Young Person’ jobs guarantee is costed at $4.86 billion over four years ($2,346 per household).
• Smaller additions are a plan to protect 30 percent of the Hauraki Gulf by 2030 (which we have costed at $52.5 million) and plans to regulate AI (which we have estimated to cost $29.2 million by mirroring the cost of Labour's similar proposals).
• The Greens’ announcement that they intend to remove level crossings in Auckland re-announces the $2.5 billion already in their transport policy, so nothing is added to their total for this.

-----------------

The Green Party's fully costed policies amount to $247.2 billion in new spending over the next four years, equivalent to $119,316 per household.

Social spending

Social spending is costed at $178.7 billion over four years, or $86,234 per household, by far the largest single category. Extending ACC to cover all injuries, disability and illness regardless of origin accounts for $96 billion of that alone, based on a 1988 Royal Commission estimate that the extension would cost roughly four times the existing scheme. Lifting benefits to "liveable rates" adds a further $27.6 billion.

On education, a universal student allowance to cover basic needs is costed at $14.4 billion, and free tertiary education up to a first degree at $8 billion, based on 257,000 students at an average $8,000 tuition fee. The party's proposed student loan write-off carries a $16.2 billion balance sheet impact, with no confirmed profit and loss impact separately available. Free early childhood education for all is costed at $5.4 billion, free school lunches for all kids in all schools at $2.2 billion, and expanding free apprenticeship programmes at $200 million.

Paid parental leave extended to 65 weeks, 39 more weeks, for an estimated 56,000 parents, is costed at $6.6 billion. Increasing Pharmac funding by 10 percent of the 2026/27 medicines budget adds $720 million, and writing off Ministry of Social Development debt a further $1.37 billion.

Economic development

The Greens' economic development spending is costed at $51.1 billion over four years, or $24,685 per household. Transport is now the largest commitment at $24.3 billion ($11,719 per household), following the release of the Greens’ 2026 transport policy. Passenger rail and mass rapid transit is costed at $21.1 billion: $13.65 billion for light rail, $4.02 billion for intercity passenger rail (including Te Huia), $900 million for Wellington metro rail renewals and $2.5 billion for West Auckland level crossings. Taxpayer-funded and capped public transport fares add $1.28 billion, and covering councils’ public transport funding shortfalls adds $824 million, which includes bus priority lanes and replaces our earlier $1.2 billion bus lanes estimate. Inter-regional buses are costed at $407 million, walking and cycling at $290 million, electric buses at $75 million, and EV subsidies, based on reintroducing the Clean Car Discount, at $337 million.

A further $9.4 billion is costed for tens of thousands of new public homes, based on forecast 2026/27 house-building spend and the maximum build rate achieved in 2023/24, alongside $21 million for a Certified Rental Warrant of Fitness.

Regional support commitments add $2.4 billion for the Te Rangatiratanga Trust, $2 billion for a new intergenerational fund, and $400 million for a Te Rākau restoration fund.

Energy policies add a further $3.05 billion, made up of Kiwipower ($980.6 million), expanding Warmer Homes ($969.8 million), solar on all public housing stock ($460 million), zero-interest solar loans ($428.7 million), community-owned energy ($200 million), and increased EECA funding ($12.4 million).

Using MBIE figures provided to Cabinet in 2023, we have estimated the Greens' plans to purchase 120 supermarkets to form a state-run supermarket chain at $4.7 billion, or $2,259 per household. Creating a tribunal for dealing with disputes arising from auctioning off commercial leases on unoccupied lots has been costed at $7.2 million. The Greens’ ‘A Job for Every Young Person’ jobs guarantee is costed at $4.86 billion over four years, or $2,346 per household.

Environment and arts

Environment and conservation commitments total $1.6 billion over four years, or $773 per household. This includes $1.25 billion to expand Jobs for Nature, $200 million to introduce a price on agricultural emissions, $90 million to restore the Ministry for the Environment, and $13.5 million to increase funding for the EPA and community environment groups, based on a 10 percent uplift of the EPA’s 2026/27 functions budget. Protecting 30 percent of the Hauraki Gulf by 2030 adds $52.5 million, which we have costed by scaling the Department of Conservation’s $10.5 million cost of establishing the Gulf’s current protected areas (about 6 percent).

$200 million has also been promised for the promotion of te reo Māori.

Government services and administration

On government services, the Greens' policy to lift core public service pay by 10 percent is costed at $15.5 billion over four years, or $7,490 per household, applying the increase across the entire $38.8 billion public sector wage bill.

The Greens’ AI policy sets out five goals but gives no costing. We have costed at $29.2 million by assuming it mirrors Labour's similar proposals.

The Greens have proposed a lobbyist register and commission, and restrictions on political donations. We have costed this at $48 million over four years, matching the lobbying and donations part of Opportunity's clean up politics package.

 (t) policies where we've taken parties' costings at face value.
(o) uncosted policies that we have had to cost ourselves.
(d) policies where we have disputed parties' own costings.