Increased visa application fees and firearms legislation reform w/ the National Party’s Katie Nimon: 13th August, 2024

The government recently announced increases to visa application fees across several groups, in some cases more than doubling the cost to applicants. These changes are due to increase revenue for Immigration NZ, and are said to make the organisation 100% self-sufficient. 

On the 12th of August, the New Zealand Police Association released an open letter to the government calling out their exclusion from discussions around firearms legislation reform. The letter spoke to the necessity of existing legislation, and criticised the involvement of former and present gun lobbyists in the process, including the minister in charge Nicole McKee. According to the ACT party website, McKee was formerly the spokesperson for The Council of Licensed Firearms Owners, a gun lobbyist group. 

In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Katie Nimon, Wire host Castor asked about the changes to visa application fees and the involvement of police and gun lobbyists in firearms legislation reform.