Weekly Catchup w/ The Green Party's Ricardo Menendez March: 4th February, 2026

It was just two weeks ago, following weather warnings and torrential rain, that flooding and slips across Northland, Coromandel and Bay of Plenty wreaked havoc, cutting off communities, damaging houses, and taking at least lives.

Since the disaster, the Green Party has been advocating for the activation of the Civil Defence payment, a fund put aside to provide a modicum of support to get people back on their feet. Last week, the government announced its activation.

The quality of our lives, the affordability of our food, the pay of our jobs, the success of our enterprises and arts, all summed up in the words “state of the economy”. In the run up to the election, where kiwi’s will get their say on if we feel the current government has been good kaitiaki of our economy or not, the measures of its success are becoming increasingly fought over. What measure’s are thought to be important may well impact who gets to govern us over the next THREE years.

Finally, this Friday we celebrate ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY SIX YEARS since the signing the te Tiriti o Waitangi or the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 that laid the foundation for the creation of the New Zealand state today.

For our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the state of the economy, and how we commemorate Waitangi day, but began by asking him about the government's activation of the Civil Defence Payment that he had advocated for.