Leighton Baker.  Rob Hennin, in his article in the NZ Herald today states, “Health costs will soon overtake superannuation as the Government’s biggest social spending obligation. That has to be of concern to any political party likely to be involved in running a government in the future. No one is keen to face the fact that the growth in health costs is outstripping our ability to pay. But it is a reality that needs addressing.”

Conservative Party is a Party of solutions. Rob Hennin raises three suggestions in his article:

Private Health Insurance needs to be encouraged. Conservative policy is to make payments for private health insurance tax deductible to help compensate those who choose to ease the burden on the public health system in this way.

Make Health Insurance compulsory for visitors to New Zealand as we do with international students. Conservative policy includes such a requirement, and includes the cover of accidents as well, rather than being covered by ACC.

Introduce a medical savings account. Conservative policy is to investigate the creation of Kiwi Health Accounts to serve individuals and families for their future health needs.

Not only does our policy include these things, but we also have solutions to the growing demand on our health sector, addressing the causes. Every dollar spent on prevention results in several dollars saving in treatment.

·      Age related, government funded, health checks to enable early intervention in health issues common to New Zealanders.
·      Providing health education in schools that does in fact result in healthy living
·      Quality housing, reducing risk of sicknesses such as influenza, bronchitis, asthma etc
·      Strengthening the family unit to reduce isolation leading to drug and alcohol addictions.

These solutions are not expensive and could be implemented quickly and without substantial cost, resulting in huge future savings and easing the burden on our current health care system.

“The Conservative Party is a Party of practical solutions. We believe in every area, prevention is better than cure,” says Party Leader Leighton Baker.

Leighton Baker.  Conservative Party Leader Leighton Baker is disappointed that in last night’s TV3 Leaders Debate, the Prime minister did not take the opportunity to be a voice for the voiceless.

Jacinda Ardern said she wants abortion taken out of the Crimes Act because “it is about people being able to make their own decisions.” That could not be further from the truth.

The child in the womb also has a right according to our current law and according to United Nations declarations. According to our law, abortion is to be considered after “having full regard for the rights of the unborn child.”

When a decision involves two people, one of them cannot claim it as being a decision belonging only to themselves. Abortion is such a situation.

The Prime Minister had the opportunity last night to speak up for the rights of the unborn and make it clear that a decision by a mother to abort her child, is a decision that kills, and that is a crime. To take Abortion law out of the Crimes Act, is to say that taking the life of another for one’s convenience is no longer a crime.

“No scientist will deny that the developing child in the womb is life. It is time we called it what it is, and when we return to valuing life in the womb rather than abusing it, we may also see a change in how we value children rather than abusing them,” says Leighton Baker. “The only difference between a foetus and a baby is love!”

 

Leighton Baker. Recent articles on the exploitation and trafficking of young people into sex work is surely an indication that the legalisation of prostitution has failed.

In 2003 our Government used the dubious process of Conscience Votes to legalise prostitution. There was no mandate from the population to do so and it was based on a false premise of making sex work safe.

Fourteen years later and the results of that legislation show that it is hard for the police to prosecute in an industry legalised by Parliament. Maybe it’s a case of the law of unintended consequences, but I have a suspicion that there were many people predicting this sort of outcome before the voting took place.

So where to now? Firstly a change of law to make the purchase of sex illegal, with the accompanying message that violating people is not OK.

Next, let’s get rid of these conscience votes and allow New Zealanders to set the moral code for New Zealand, not just 64 MPs. Let’s bring in binding referenda so the Government is ruled by the people, not the other way round.

Then, for the benefit of all New Zealanders, let’s start relationship education in schools so that our young people can learn how to build, develop and maintain healthy long term relationships. Maybe, just maybe, if we have good relationship skills it will reduce these abusive relationships that are destroying our young people.

Elliot Ikilei . The Conservative Party NZ Manurewa candidate talks about the damage to family and society that has been done especially to Manurewa. Now you have an alternative with the Conservatives who have policies to strengthen the family and address the societal problems at the root of our NZ Society.

Spare a Thought (and possibly a vote) For the Minor Parties

Leighton Baker, Conservative Party Leader. While current members of parliament are on full pay as they represent their Party and ask for your vote, Parties that are outside of parliament stump up for most costs themselves.

No government limo’s, free air travel and fully funded secretaries for them. It is either using up accrued leave, taking leave without pay, or working during the day and politicking at night.

No wonder then, that they get so aggrieved when they are ignored by the media. Not only are they working to pay their own way, but their tax money is being used to promote their opposition!

No media time equals no public recognition, which means poor polling, which means even less exposure, and so it spirals downwards for these few brave people who are willing to put their head above the parapet for a cause or an idea. At the same time, Parties in parliament get disproportionate amounts of funding to buy broadcasting time, and are constantly interviewed (free time) for their views, while those outside are almost completely ignored.

When the two bigger Parties said that they would no longer debate with the lesser mortals, the correct response from the media would have been to tell them that they would only run debates with all Parties present. Alas they did not, and now we have the media promoting the view that there are only two Parties worth voting for.

It may be worth remembering that these Parties have shared the helm in New Zealand’s political leadership, and while they decry each other and proclaim their suitability for the job, they share the combined responsibility of a country with a malfunctioning welfare system, over crowded prisons, depleted Government assets and a youth population in crisis. Let’s also mention excessive waste in government circles, less affordable housing, struggling families, and a health service unable to meet the demands.

Perhaps just a whiff of fresh thinking from political minnows might be enough for voters to look deeper into the policies of Parties championed and run by passionate volunteers.

Maybe they do have something to offer.

Finally, please remember that the only wasted vote is the vote that does not align with your convictions!

Leighton Baker, Conservative Party Leader. The debate and discussion at the start of the last week of the 2017 General Election around the significance of the Nelson Green Party polls has been described as inaccurate at best, and completely misleading at worst.

There is a side note to the story not being told. According to sources in a particular street in Nelson, the Conservative Party Candidate is leading by a reasonably sizable margin.

“Our internal polling of Pudge the Cat, Kiwi the Dog, Ester the Goat, and Bruce the guinea pig, suggests a swing to the relatively unknown lifestyle block farmer and Conservative Party stalwart, Simon Gutschlag.”

Gutschlag agrees there is a sniff of change in the air. “Actually, that could be the cows next door, but compared to the poll earlier in the week – I’d be more inclined to go with the bovine smell.”

Candidate Gutschlag continues. “We’ve been inundated with invitations to speak at events, kiss babies, and our polling has been audited by an extremely independent 10 year old.”

“This is not a game we are playing here, lives could be affected by a poll suggesting that the goat has changed its allegiance from lighter blue to green or as we say in rural NZ –  from “lite to trim”.

Patrick Gower was quoted this week as saying the Nelson polling was “fake news”. “You couldn’t be more correct Paddy – the real news is that in the words of Edmund Blackadder, Nelson could well be a ‘Rotten Borough’.”

The Conservative Party of New Zealand is calling for a change to our electoral system whereby list MPs from parties that do not form Government, do not enter Parliament.

In 1999 81.5% of respondents to a referendum on “Should the size of the House of Representatives be reduced from 120 members to 99 members?” voted yes. As with all other Citizens initiated referenda, the government of the day totally ignored the result.

With our proposal, the leaders of the parties affected would remain in parliament, and retain the voting rights as per the percentage received in the General Election. All conscience votes would be put to Referenda for the public to decide.

Although we recognise the effort that list MPs put in, they do not represent a specific constituency, and the votes of their leader can reflect the percentage support for that party, “Do our list MPs give value for money when we could have saved up to $100ml in the last 15 years, money that could have been spent on knees, hips, or education?” asks Leighton Baker, Leader of the Conservative Party.

Leighton Baker, Conservative Party NZ leader. Leighton talks about what we must all consider now with 48 hours to go to the election. Leighton quotes Martin Luther King Jnr on what we need to think about in who to vote for, supporting our own convictions and values.

Cowardice– asks the question, is it safe?

Expediency– asks the question, is it polite?

Vanity– asks the question, is it popular?

But Conscience asks the question, is it right?

There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe nor Politic nor popular. But we must take it because it is right.

We have received so much support from voters wishing to join up with us to help make New Zealand a better country. The pic shows a selection over the last few months . We would love to have you on-board so let us know how you want to help.
See our policies to help NZ do an about change and stop the progressive degradation of our country

* BE HEARD! We know you’re tired of being ignored by successive Governments over-riding the public will. It happened in the smacking referendum and others as well. See what we are proposing on how to reset democracy in NZ with our BCIR POLICY (Binding Citizens Initiated Referendum) and DEMOCRACY POLICY.

* WE LOVE, RESPECT & VALUE LIFE. We value life in all its forms from Fetus to Death and it’s time to stop the culture of death developing in this country. See our HEALTH POLICY.

* HOUSING FOR ALL. We all need somewhere to live and it’s now in short supply, increasing prices beyond many of us. See our HOUSING POLICY.

* OUR PEOPLE ARE TURNING TO DRUGS AND ALCOHOL. Lets stop the abuse and talk about the elephants in the room. See our DRUGS & ALCOHOL POLICY.

* THE NATURAL FAMILY UNIT IS BEST FOR ALL– Governments just don’t get it! We need to value and protect the traditional family which is the basis for a healthy culture in NZ. See our FAMILY POLICY. We also want to make sure no vulnerable people or families get left behind so see our WELFARE POLICY.

* PROTECT OUR HOMES AND BUSINESSES– We need to turn around the feeling we have that crime is on the increase and we don’t feel safe at home or at our small retail businesses. See our LAW & ORDER POLICY and JUSTICE POLICY.

* OUR YOUTH CRIME PREVENTION NEEDS TO BE REAL– We need to arrest the problems faced by some of our youth and keep them from crime. See our YOUTH CRIME POLICY and our BOOT FARM POLICY.

* MOVING FORWARD WITH MAORI– Looking at working together as Kiwis. See our MAORI & TREATY POLICY

* A FAIRER TAXATION SYSTEM– We have the answer in the ROBIN HOOD Tax i.e the FTT policy. This is radical but can make all the difference. See our TAXATION POLICY

* WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE ON THE WORLD STAGE– Radical solutions, but small as we are we can make a difference. See our FOREIGN AFFAIRS POLICY

* HELP US BUILD A RESILIENT RURAL ECONOMY– The health of New Zealand’s economy is dependent on the rural farming community. See our AGRICULTURE/AQUACULTURE POLICY

* WE ARE COMMITTED TO PRESERVING & ENHANCING OUR NATURAL ENVIRONMENT- See our ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

* ALL NEW ZEALANDERS ARE IMMIGRANTS OR DESCENDANTS OF IMMIGRANTS– we welcome those who would like to make New Zealand their home- See our IMMIGRATION POLICY

* EDUCATION IS A KEY TO REDUCING CRIME – we want to inspire young people, strengthen relationships and avoid poverty- see our EDUCATION POLICY

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Builder, Construction Company CEO and Conservative Party Leader, says, “There are three reasons why the housing shortage won’t get settled any time soon.

1.       It’s a numbers game. We are only building enough houses for the people that are arriving annually, and the more that arrive, the more houses are required. To catch up on the housing shortfall we need population stability for 7.5 months and house building to continue at the current rate. Bringing more people in to build houses just adds to demand and does not address supply line issues.
2.       Cost barriers. We are still building houses too big. It’s unrealistic for first home buyers to be able to afford a house with ensuites, tiled showers and butlers pantries. We need to build more compact and better quality houses. Expecting first home buyers to be able to save 20% deposit while still paying rent is also dreaming.
3.       Quality. The issue is not just with quantity, but quality. Yes we can insulate houses better, but unless we ventilate them properly we are only shifting the mould problems from inside the room, to inside the wall.

The solutions?

1. Stable population for 7.5 months.
2. Nationwide pre-approved house designs and standards.
3. Compulsory 10 year build guarantees ( let insurers vet builders)
4. Mechanical heat recovery ventilation systems.
5. Government funded rent-to-buy options.
6. Get more tradespeople in government to make practical decisions.

“Vote Conservative Party if you really want progress on basic issues,” he concludes.

As we head into the last day of the election, it is important that we season some of the rhetoric with a little reality, rather than blanket, great sounding statements that have no substance, we need to put some practical solutions in place that will make a difference.

Socialism has tried to make everyone the same to eliminate poverty and it has never worked. Pol Pot tried it in Cambodia, Stalin in Russia, Chairman Mao in China and Ceausescu in Romania, all with disastrous results like mass deaths and abject poverty.

Reality teaches us that as long as people have choice, we will have the poor. Some people will choose alcohol and drugs over food and exercise, gambling over investment and apathy over industry. Government’s role is to provide an environment where there is opportunity for all to succeed and there are some safety nets for those that don’t.

So what are some practical steps that the next government can take to reduce poverty?

Making education attractive and relevant to all. Early trades streaming for hands on learners will keep them engaged in education and provide them with the skills that they will need to succeed, while keeping them out of crime. Introducing budgeting advice would also help, as does supporting Charter schools which continue phenomenal success with young people whom the Ministry of Education refer to as, ‘priority learners’.

Limiting interest charged in relation to the OCR. Loan sharks target the poor and keep them trapped in the prison of poverty with crippling interest rates. Government can help here with some protection for the vulnerable.

Relationship training in schools. Children brought up in homes with a mum and dad in a loving relationship are far less likely to end up in poverty, so let’s give our young people the tools to build, develop and maintain healthy relationships.

Stable housing and employment allow families to put down roots and plan for the future. Rent to own state housing would give struggling families hope and a future, and hope is a key ingredient in avoiding poverty.

The Conservative Party recognises that New Zealand is a great place to live, with plenty of natural resources and opportunities, by working together we may not eliminate poverty, but we can certainly make success available to everyone.