The Taxpayers’ Union notes at least 17 announcements from within the last four months which are missing from the Greens' fiscal plan, despite the Greens describing themselves as “the party of real economic responsibility.
These 17 policies total $176.374 billion, or $85,122 per household.
| Policy | Date announced | 4-year costing ($m) |
|---|---|---|
| ACC extension to cover all injuries, disability and illness | July 2026 | 96,000 |
| Increase benefits to liveable rates | July 2026 | 27,604 |
| Student loan write-off | July 2026 | 16,222 |
| Universal student income | July 2026 | 14,400 |
| Work towards free tertiary education up to first degree | July 2026 | 8,000 |
| Paid parental leave to 65 weeks | July 2026 | 6,600 |
| Free early childhood education for all | July 2026 | 5,379 |
| Work towards writing off MSD debt | July 2026 | 1,370 |
| EV subsidies | July 2026 | 337.1 |
| Price on agricultural emissions | July 2026 | 200 |
| Ministry for the Environment funding | July 2026 | 90 |
| Hauraki Gulf protection | October 2026 | 52.5 |
| Lobbying regulation | September 2026 | 48 |
| AI regulation | October 2026 | 29.2 |
| Rental Warrant of Fitness | July 2026 | 21 |
| Community environment funding (EPA) | July 2026 | 13.5 |
| Commercial rent tribunal | September 2026 | 7.2 |
| Total | 176,373.5 |
With voting opening Monday, Taxpayers’ Union Head of Policy James Ross asks when we can expect the other half of the fiscal plan.
“Were the Greens telling the truth when they made each of these 17 missing spending promises between July 2026 and now? Or are they telling the truth now by not including them in the fiscal plan? It has to be one or the other.”
“Why bother releasing a fiscal plan at all if the majority of your spending plans aren’t going to be included? A small fiscal gap is one thing, but $176 billion isn’t small. That $85,122-per-household is about the same size as total crown government spending last year.”
“Giving the benefit of the doubt, maybe it’s that the left hand doesn’t know what the other, further-left hand is doing at Green Party HQ. But it doesn’t take a Parliamentary Budget Officer to show that this fiscal plan isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.”
