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Independent public-opinion data2026 election cycle / Public beta
CAMPAIGN GUIDE · NEW ZEALAND 2026

Compare the parties.

See the proposals, follow the funding and read the evidence.

7 parties67 selected policy summariesChecked

Proposals and forecasts are party claims. Our checks trace the sources and arithmetic; coalition agreements may change delivery.

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Work & business

Jobs, training, worker rights and support for businesses.

3 summaries · 1 party

National

3 summaries

Extend and share paid parental leave

Extend paid parental leave to 30 weeks in stages and let parents share or overlap the same combined entitlement.

2026 election policyParty source
Our assessment & details

Our assessment

Analysis
Strengths
  • Adds paid weeks on a dated rollout and lets eligible parents choose overlapping leave, offering more flexibility around a new child.Evidence
Trade-offs & risks
  • More weeks do not raise the weekly payment cap or expand eligibility. Overlapping leave uses the same total entitlement, rather than doubling it.Evidence
Open questions
  • When would shared-leave rules commence, and what fiscal conditions would trigger the longer-term 40-week ambition?Evidence

Party proposal

National would extend paid parental leave from 26 to 30 weeks in stages and allow parents to share or overlap the same combined entitlement. A 40-week longer-term ambition depends on future fiscal conditions.

Who it covers
Eligible parents under existing eligibility and maximum weekly-payment settings. Sharing the entitlement does not double the total weeks available for a child.
Timing
27 weeks from 1 July 2027, 28 from 1 July 2028 and 30 from 1 July 2029, for entitlements commencing on or after each date.
Cost & funding stated by the party
Displayed extension costs sum to $327.5m over 2027/28–2030/31, matching the fiscal plan. The standalone $327.4m total differs by $0.1m, consistent with rounding. The $121.9m KiwiSaver top-up is a separate row; shared-leave administration uses existing baselines.
Sources reviewed
National: parental-leave paper Policy paper · Publication date not stated
National: new fiscal plan Policy paper · Published

Jobseeker support, lower long-term payments and residency rules

Add employment support, reduce long-term Jobseeker payments and change residency rules, with specified protections for existing recipients and exemptions.

2026 election policyParty source
Our assessment & details

Our assessment

Analysis
Strengths
  • Targets practical case management and employment support at 30,000 work-ready Jobseekers, including specified places and programme funding for young people.Evidence
Trade-offs & risks
  • Lower long-term payments and longer eligibility waits reduce support for affected households, even when they have not secured a job.Evidence
Open questions
  • How robust are programme outcomes and hardship offsets, and how would drug-test safeguards and treatment access work?Evidence 1Evidence 2

Party proposal

National would add intensive employment support, reduce Jobseeker payments after two of the previous three years, introduce random drug tests and extend the main-benefit residency requirement.

Who it covers
The employment programme targets 30,000 work-ready Jobseekers. Long-term payment reductions are smaller for households with children; Supported Living Payment is unchanged. Existing main-benefit recipients, refugees and protected persons retain specified protections from the residency change.
Timing
Long-term payment reductions and the five-year residency requirement from 1 April 2028. The employment and savings table covers 2027/28–2030/31.
Cost & funding stated by the party
The plan uses $583m net savings, including $11m initial net cost. The welfare paper’s main saving is $572m from reduced payments, with other assistance offsetting one-fifth of the reduction; it does not assume extra employment-response savings from that payment change. Drug testing uses around $1.5m annually from MSD baselines.
Sources reviewed
National: welfare policy paper Policy paper · Publication date not stated
National: new fiscal plan Policy paper · Published

Small-business support and employment-law changes

Help first-time employers, simplify administration and minor employment disputes, and require minimum employee support before new collective bargaining.

2026 election policyParty source
Our assessment & details

Our assessment

Analysis
Strengths
  • First-employer guidance and simpler records target practical compliance burdens. The dispute proposals retain fair-hearing safeguards and a separate route for serious cases.Evidence 1Evidence 2
Trade-offs & risks
  • The bargaining-support test creates a new hurdle for initiating collective negotiations. Shared business data and faster procedures require the promised privacy and fairness safeguards.Evidence
Open questions
  • What would implementation cost, which agencies deliver each measure, and how would progress be measured? The paper distinguishes existing programmes from new commitments.Evidence 1Evidence 2

Party proposal

National proposes support for first-time employers, simpler recurring seasonal agreements and apprenticeship records, one-time business information sharing, and faster minor employment disputes. It would also introduce a minimum employee-support test before new collective bargaining begins, retain Investment Boost, and support 200 promising exporters.

Who it covers
Small firms, their workers and exporters. Bargaining would need support from the lesser of ten employees or 20% of the covered workforce, with at least two employees.
Timing
Employment-law consolidation in the next parliamentary term; no common launch date is stated for all new measures.
Cost & funding stated by the party
The full paper includes existing programmes and new regulatory or administrative proposals. It does not give a separate total for all 47 measures. Investment Boost is an existing deduction; the GST registration threshold is proposed for review, not a promised specified increase.
Sources reviewed
National: Small-business plan Policy page · Publication date not stated
National: full 47-point small-business paper Policy paper · Publication date not stated

Selected coverage, not a ranking of policy quality. How we review the sources

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