Pacific households’ income is one of the lowest in New Zealand. They could benefit the least under National.
The Council of Trade Unions claimed the party’s tax package announced in November awarded 10 times as much money to the wealthiest New Zealanders as it does to middle and low-income earners.
The council said the changes would give people earning the Prime Minister’s salary about $54,000 over the three years of the next Parliament, while people on the minimum wage would get a bit less than $350 over the same period. National’s finance spokeswoman Nicola Willis said at the time she completely rejected the figures.
In 2022, NBR made a list of all New Zealand billionaires. Next to all were white and none were Pacific peoples.
Most Pacific peoples depend on publicly funded schools, hospitals, and transportation. Money given to millionaires and billionaires via tax cuts could go to these services.
And Luxon’s tough on crime approach which is ignorant of the real causes of crime hurts young Pacific peoples disproportionately as well.
National ads suggest they are a party that will serve Pacific people but their policies run contrary to their ads. When Luxon said he wanted more diversity and inclusion in National, I thought he meant in reality. In my opinion, it appears he meant in an alternative reality that only exists on our devices. It is reminiscent of corporate tokenism.
National MPs include a former high school bully, someone who said she was yet to see evidence humans have contributed to climate change, someone who attended an anti-mandate protest, a man who appeared to celebrate people losing the right to abortion, a woman who has joked about transgender people, a man who claimed gays should be treated differently in law than heterosexuals, and a woman who said anti-transgender activist Posie Parker should have the right to come to New Zealand.
But no Pacific person currently. The usage of AI-generated Pacific people in attack ads while not having a Pacific MP is inappropriate and in my opinion, cunning.
AI has changed the game. No laws or advertising standards require political parties to declare when they are using AI in their ads. AI has given politicians an opportunity to mislead voters through the use of fake imagery, audio and videos while creating the impression they are real.
National has leapt at that opportunity. Labour has said it doesn’t intend to use AI in its campaign.
I believe the use of AI-generated ads will hurt Luxon more.
In the latest Newshub-Reid political poll, 47 per cent of people said he was out of touch with the problems affecting New Zealanders today. He was down 2.4 points to 16.4 per cent as preferred prime minister - lower than Judith Collins’ popularity when she lost a landslide election to Labour in 2020.
New Zealanders have been screaming for authenticity from Luxon. If he wants a chance at being prime minister and wants to attract the Pacific vote, he needs to give New Zealanders, especially Pacific people, a reason to think he has their best interests in mind. Instead, in my opinion Luxon is serving us deepfakes and Pacific people won’t trust a fake.
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.
