The Green Party's Ricardo Menéndez March

As the US and Israel’s war on Iran continues, Iran has continued to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed, blocking a fifth of the world’s oil trade. As oil supplies shrink and demand increases, prices have jumped across the world, including in Aotearoa. With fuel prices rising amidst a cost of living crisis, questions have been raised as to what the government has done to reduce prices for New Zealanders. 

This week has seen two groups, Lawyers for Climate Action and the Environmental Law Initiative taking the government to court over what they claim is an unlawful policy for tackling climate change. As the government continues to promote tree planting as a way to offset emissions, opponents say we should instead focus on emissions reductions.

Finally, this past week has also seen the report released from the second phase of the government’s COVID 19 inquiry, to strong responses from most of parliament. While the report’s findings were mostly balanced, with a mix of praise and critique for the government of the time, many politicians have seized it as fuel for their party’s agenda on the COVID response. 

For our weekly catchup with the Green Party’s Ricardo Menendez March, News Director Castor asked him about each of these issues, beginning with cost of living.

Over the weekend, the US and Israel began conducting bombing strikes on Iran, already killing Iran’s Supreme Leader - Ayatollah Khamenei - close to 50 Iranian leaders, and hundreds of civilians - including - according to Iranian state media - at least 153 civilians at a school for children between the ages of seven and twelve.

The strikes have been met with criticism from experts in New Zealand, who have condemned the strikes as illegal under international law. However, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters, have so far expressed neither explicit support nor criticism of the United States and Israel’s bombing campaign.

Shipping and energy costs have already been impacted by the war, with the costs of liquid natural gas rapidly increasing, demonstrating the risks of the government’s plan to build a liquid natural gas terminal in Taranaki in introducing greater price shock vulnerability to New Zealand’s energy system.

Meanwhile, the people’s select committee on pay equity - a coalition of women who formerly served as MPs - published their findings on the government’s passing of the Equal Pay Amendment Act 2025, with recommendations that the legislation be scrapped, alongside the introduction of a new independent pay equity unit.

For the weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Wire Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the Green Party’s response to this report, but began by talking about the US-Israel bombing of Iran and New Zealand’s role in responding to the conflict.

With the long-delayed opening of the city rail link due to later this year, and the government re-launching their roads of national significance, eyes have turned to a perennial problem. Why do we spend more on building than any other OECD nation yet receive far less bang for buck? 

To solve these problems, the government asked the Infrastructure Commission to write a plan that could be the basis for a bipartisan infrastructure pipeline, the National Infrastructure Plan, to give us steady development and perspective on our infrastructure needs and issues.

And this week, the Employment Relations Amendment bill under ACT MP Brooke Van Veldon has reached its final reading before being put into law. It is set to overhaul our employment system, supporters say it will make it easier for contractors to get the arrangements that they want and increase work, critics say it will push workers into more precarious positions with less protections from exploitation.

For this weeks catch up with the Green Party I spoke to MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the National Infrastructure Plan and Employment Relations Amendment Bill.

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.