Craig Renney

Labour stands with public servants, public service unions, and the services we all need. 167 days to make this a one-term government and turn New Zealand around

Everyday this government tries to do Wellington down, we just wake up in the morning and look better than ever. It’s the perfect day to see you at Te Papa at 12 - stand with @NZPSA and tell the government how out of touch it is with the values we hold. See you there!

With more rain coming for Wellington, please look out for each other over the next few days. Stay safe, stay out of flood water, & follow emergency services advice. Have a look at the WREMO & Wellington City Council websites: facebook.com/WREMOnz/ facebook.com/wellingtoncity…

We need to do better than this. For years we made bipartisan progress on tackling something that really matters. Children's futures are blighted by child poverty - something beyond their control. There can be fewer things more fundamental to the purpose of government than this.

This is what happens if you cut the minimum wage in real terms year after year. This is what happens if you spend more time kicking people out of housing rather than building it. This is what happens when you care more about cruise ship passengers than Kiwis.

Child poverty data from Stats NZ out today. All political parties except Act agreed to the Child Poverty Reduction Act 2018, creating legally mandated targets for child poverty reduction. Right now, we are missing even the looser targets the government has set. A 🧵

If you think that life is getting harder, not easier, you aren't alone. Record numbers of people want work and can't get it. Highest unemployment in 10 years. More cuts signalled at the Budget in front of us. Do you feel back on track yet?

For households on the lowest incomes, annual inflation is 3.4%. For pensioners, its 3.8%. For the richest its 1.2%. The minimum wage goes up by less than inflation for 3 consecutive years in 26. That laser-like focus on the cost of living seems to be pointing at the wrong people

Prices for basics are rising again at a rate much faster than wages, new data from Stats NZ shows. 70% of workers got a pay rise less than 3% last year and 44% got no pay rise at all. Food prices rose 4.6% overall, with the price of white bread rising 58% this year. A 🧵

Charm Skinner, who works for the Salvation Army, reminded us that “in all this data, these are the real lived experiences of whānau”. We have choices ahead at the next election, about how to tackle these problems. Recent decisions have taken us here. Let’s make better choices.

Drug consumption has rocketed over the past two years. Meth use has nearly doubled during that time. Support for people affected by drug abuse needs more support given this weight of consumption.

I’m here at the release of the Salvation Army State of the Nation for 2026. It’s a portrait of the problems facing Aotearoa, and how we are doing in tackling them. Many of the problems we face have worsened over the past two years. A 🧵