Christopher Luxon says times have been tough for New Zealanders but there are green shoots emerging, as he responds to the latest 1News Verian Poll, which showed a fall for National – and the left bloc having the numbers to form a government.
The poll of 1000 eligible voters revealed National was down 3% and Labour up 4% in the poll, which ran from February 3 to 7.
It found that if an election were held today, the left bloc of Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori would have 61 seats — enough to govern.
National dipped to 34%, compared to their previous result of 37% recorded in December.
The Prime Minister told Breakfast “there’s lots of polls” and wasn’t fazed by this result.
“There’s lots of polls… the only poll that matters is actually [in] 2026 when the New Zealand public will make their decision [and ask] ‘has this Government made them better off, or not, over that three-year period?’.
“We’re doing everything we can in a very tough set of circumstances.
“I know it’s been tough for New Zealanders. There’s some relief in there and some green shoots with lower interest rates, tax relief, rising levels of confidence. Business, consumer, pharma, that’s all good.”
The poll also found there was growing concern about the state of the economy.
Economic optimism fell by 5% on the December Verian poll, down to 36%, while economic pessimism was up 3% to 25%.
Luxon said the Government’s job this year was about “growth, growth, growth”.
“That’s why it’s so important because growth creates higher paying, and more jobs and that’s what its all about.”
Luxon said he was working 20 hours a day to “make sure we are delivering for New Zealanders”.
“This is a fantastic country with an awesome future. We’re in a tough spot at the moment but we can get through to the other side, but we’ve got to make some tough decisions.
“But we have to, importantly, embrace growth and a positive mindset that we have a fantastic future ahead of us.”
Poll result
Yesterday’s numbers mean that National would have 43 seats in Parliament, down 6 on their current allocation, Labour would have 42, up 8, The Greens would have 13, down 1, ACT would have 11, the same number as they have at present.
New Zealand First would have 6, down 2, and Te Pāti Māori would also have 6, as they do at present. That assumes they win the 6 Māori seats that they won at the 2023 election.
Parliament’s size would reduce by 2 down to 121 seats. There would still be an overhang of 1 seat as a result of Te Pāti Māori’s result.
