Chris Hipkins: Labour leader cautiously optimistic off the back of new poll results

Labour is cautiously optimistic a new poll might spell trouble for the coalition.

The Taxpayers' Union-Curia poll earlier today showed it could not form a Government - pushed by drops in support to ACT and NZ First. 

Leader Chris Hipkins says it shows the country's heading in the wrong direction.

"We know we've got a lot of work to do - we've still got a year and a half to go, so polls at this point are interesting. And it's nice to be doing well in them and we've still got a fair amount of water to flow under the bridge."

Chris Luxon's taken a hit - down 3.8 points in preferred Prime Minister rankings to 20.7 percent - while the Labour's Hipkins rose 2.3 points to 17.6 percent.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
A taxpayers union. Caurier Pole today wouldn't let the coalition
parties form a government. With a sharp almost four percentage
point jump and support for the Greens, the left block
of Parliament could form a government with sixty one seats
compared to fifty nine on the other side of the house.
Fifty percent of the respondents and this is the part
that we'll worry the government say the country is moving
in the wrong direction. Just thirty four feel it's moving

(00:22):
in the right direction. The Labour leaders Chris Hipkins's with
me this evening. Good evening, Koday, Ryan, What do you
put this down to because it's not you going up,
it's the Greens, right.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
I think that the people can see that the country's
going in the wrong direction. Actually, Labor has been going
up in all of the recent polls that have been
released since Christmas. I'm encouraged by that. But we know
we've got a lot of work to do. You know,
we've still got a year and a half to go.
So polls at this point, you know, are interesting and
it's nice to be doing well in them, but you know,
I think we've still got a fair amount of water

(00:53):
to flow under the bridge.

Speaker 1 (00:54):
Just Yet the Prime minister's talking about a summit to
attract foreign investment into New Zealand. There's one hundred big
wigs come here next month. Are you supporting that? And
do you support some of the fast track projects, some
of the roads of national significance, the infrastructure project that
they are going to be selling to these money men
and women to try and get growth out of New

(01:16):
Zealand foreign investment.

Speaker 2 (01:18):
You know, we need to be strategic about the foreign
investment we want in New Zealand. So we want foreign
investment that helps our entrepreneurs to set up and grow
companies that are going to create jobs, create higher incomes
for New Zealanders. Similarly carving the country up and howking
it off to overseas investors who are more interested in
extracting a dividend.

Speaker 1 (01:37):
Who's carving New Zealand up and howking it off?

Speaker 2 (01:40):
Well, if you look at them, if you look at
what the current government are talking about, they're saying ideally
they'd like to be able to sell them residential houses.
That's not going to make New Zealand richer as a company, but.

Speaker 1 (01:49):
They're not doing it. So are you against the changes
that they've announced?

Speaker 2 (01:53):
Well, I'm not sure that the visa changes are going
to blake New Zealand a richer place.

Speaker 1 (01:59):
Do you make New Zealand of it place? Because you
guys didn't.

Speaker 2 (02:02):
So if you look at it, there's there's a bunch
of stuff we need to do R and D, research
and development. We're well below the average in terms of
what we should be investing on research and development. We
need to increase our own savings in New Zealand, so
we had more money to invest here in New Zealand.
We've already got some quite a lot of money, and
Key we Saver, for example, it's being invested off because
those key we Saver fans can't find things to borrow.

Speaker 1 (02:24):
Politicians since Moses was a linebacker, has said R and
D up the wazoo. What's happened?

Speaker 2 (02:29):
You know?

Speaker 1 (02:30):
I mean, at least we have got at least these
guys have got a list of projects that they are
going out to the market and saying, here, invest in these.
I mean this is tangible stuff, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (02:42):
Well, if you mean investing in things like that, or
it's basically bankrolling things like roads. Ultimately New Zealanders will
probably pay more for their roads as a result of that,
because the government can actually finance the roads cheaper if
it did it through public better than no private investment.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
I mean, it's better than no roads, which you gave
us right.

Speaker 2 (02:59):
Well, though that's not true. Actually we haven't invested in
a number of roading projects, fewer roads. I invested in
a number of roading projects.

Speaker 1 (03:06):
Don't come on here and tell me your pro road.

Speaker 2 (03:10):
I think you've got to have a balanced trainsport portfolio.
You need to do both. You need to have roads,
you need to have you do need to invest in
rail and you do need to invest in public transport.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
All right, Hey, thank you very much for coming on show. Chris,
great to have you on. As always, Chris Hopkins, labor
leader on that taxpayer union Caurier poll.

Speaker 2 (03:27):
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Speaker 1 (03:31):
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