NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • All Blacks
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Shaneel Lal: ‘I am not convinced Christopher Luxon will serve all New Zealanders’

Shaneel Lal
By Shaneel Lal
Columnist, Herald on Sunday·NZ Herald·
22 Apr, 2023 05:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Christopher Luxon has Sam Uffindell’s back but what about women, Māori and queer people, asks Shaneel Lal. Photo / Sandra Conchie
Christopher Luxon has Sam Uffindell’s back but what about women, Māori and queer people, asks Shaneel Lal. Photo / Sandra Conchie

Christopher Luxon has Sam Uffindell’s back but what about women, Māori and queer people, asks Shaneel Lal. Photo / Sandra Conchie

Shaneel Lal
Opinion by Shaneel Lal
Columnist, Herald on Sunday
Learn more

National leader Christopher Luxon is taking hits as preferred prime minister in the polls, and I am not surprised. I am amazed it has taken so long.

In 2021 National selected one of their least-experienced politicians to be their leader and hoped that it would be the second coming of John Key. But it appears that Luxon will be the leader of the second coming of National’s second consecutive loss to Labour.

Why don’t most New Zealanders prefer Luxon to be prime minister?

Luxon started his first day as leader of National by declaring that he was pro-life and agreeing that abortion is tantamount to murder.

In 2022, following Simon O’Connor’s social media post appearing to celebrate the removal of the constitutional right to abortion in the United States, Luxon declared “the National Party is a party for women” before listing what women were most concerned about. As a result, women on Twitter turned Luxon into a meme, asking him if he could tell them what they wanted on meaningless topics under #askchristopher.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Read More

  • Posie Parker in NZ: Shaneel Lal thanks Auckland after ...
  • Shaneel Lal: Why I almost didn’t go to the New Zealander ...
  • Shaneel Lal: An open letter to the Immigration Minister ...
  • Shaneel Lal: David Seymour backs freedom of speech ...

Luxon says he will not touch the present Government’s abortion laws, but why should I trust him?

After all, Luxon refused to release to the public a King’s Counsel report into Sam Uffindell, a National MP who admitted to beating a fellow student and being a “bully” at King’s College. A woman alleged Uffindell was “an aggressive bully” who once pounded on her locked bedroom door, screaming obscenities, until she fled through her window. In 2004, the flat inhabited by Uffindell had a coat hook displaying women’s underwear.

This is the man Luxon is protecting. As I see it, it would be reasonable for New Zealanders not to trust him.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

While protecting a man who has admitted to a violent attack, Luxon wants to be tough on crime. He hyper-focuses on gangs. After commenting on the Roe v Wade decision, he told New Zealanders women are most worried about gangs alongside failing health and education systems.

When asked last year why Luxon thought young people were turning to gangs, he claimed, “If you’re sitting in a garage in South Auckland with your two brothers and you’re thinking about life and where you’re going, consciously or unconsciously, the gang life looks pretty attractive.

“The bottom line is I’m not apologising for having serious, substantive conversations about what causes crime”, Luxon added. Luxon has proposed to separate young offenders from their families and lock them up in military boot camps. He has put forward no evidence that this will reduce youth offending.

It’s rich for Luxon to suggest that the causes of crime are young people joining gangs as a result of sitting with their brothers in a South Auckland garage while the National Party houses a private school, wealthy, white perpetrator of a violent attack.

I am not convinced Luxon will serve all New Zealanders. His other actions strengthen my belief.

In 2019, when Luxon was chief executive, Air NZ attempted to trademark the logo for its in-flight magazine Kia Ora, an act the Māori Council described as “cultural appropriation”.

At Rātana this year, Luxon, standing in opposition to co-governance, called the debate “divisive and immature”. At Waitangi, he claimed that Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the colonisation that followed was a “little experiment” that led to “a 21st-century success story”.

In 2021, Stats NZ reported that Māori life expectancy was 7.5 years less than Pākehā. Luxon will scrap the Māori Health Authority. Who is this a success story for?

At other times, Luxon has gunned for unemployed young people saying he would end their “free ride” and not “waste human potential”. Even if his policies were effective, the way he describes people is dehumanising.

His actions haven’t been particularly supportive of queer people either. He claimed there are only “two biological genders”; described Judith Collins ridiculing trans people as “Judith is being Judith”; and said Posie Parker, whose event was attended by neo-Nazis in Melbourne, shouldn’t be stopped from hosting her anti-trans rally in New Zealand just because people “don’t like what they say”.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Who does Luxon stand for? I don’t find Luxon trustworthy, likeable, or reasonable. I don’t feel that Luxon has my back. Luxon’s politicking feels mean-spirited, and I don’t believe New Zealanders are willing to put up with him for three years as prime minister.

Shaneel Shavneel Lal (they/them) was instrumental in the bill to ban conversion therapy in New Zealand. They are a law and psychology student, model and influencer.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

Armed police cordon off Hamilton street after serious firearms incident

09 Jul 11:42 AM
Politics

Jacinda Ardern says she'll provide evidence to Covid Royal Commission

09 Jul 08:35 AM
New Zealand

Lotto numbers revealed in giant $10m Powerball draw

09 Jul 08:32 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
Armed police cordon off Hamilton street after serious firearms incident
New Zealand

Armed police cordon off Hamilton street after serious firearms incident

09 Jul 11:42 AM
Red Bull parts ways with longtime F1 boss Christian Horner
Sport

Red Bull parts ways with longtime F1 boss Christian Horner

09 Jul 10:00 AM
Against the odds: Maroons triumph in epic State of Origin decider
Rugby League

Against the odds: Maroons triumph in epic State of Origin decider

09 Jul 09:30 AM
Jacinda Ardern says she'll provide evidence to Covid Royal Commission
Politics

Jacinda Ardern says she'll provide evidence to Covid Royal Commission

09 Jul 08:35 AM
Lotto numbers revealed in giant $10m Powerball draw
New Zealand

Lotto numbers revealed in giant $10m Powerball draw

09 Jul 08:32 AM

Latest from New Zealand

Armed police cordon off Hamilton street after serious firearms incident

Armed police cordon off Hamilton street after serious firearms incident

09 Jul 11:42 AM

Police warn it's a 'dangerous' situation.

Jacinda Ardern says she'll provide evidence to Covid Royal Commission

Jacinda Ardern says she'll provide evidence to Covid Royal Commission

09 Jul 08:35 AM
Lotto numbers revealed in giant $10m Powerball draw

Lotto numbers revealed in giant $10m Powerball draw

09 Jul 08:32 AM
Hospital staff safety concerns rise after gunpoint incident

Hospital staff safety concerns rise after gunpoint incident

09 Jul 07:20 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search