The Green Party has made its final pitch to supporters ahead of election day, by outlining its track record on climate change and Covid-19 and plan for the future.
Green Party co-leaders James Shaw and Marama Davidson. Photo: RNZ / Lucy Smith
The party held its final rally of the campaign on Karangahape Road in Auckland CBD this evening.
It went into the election with no bottom lines, instead announcing six priority areas over the course of the campaign on farming, transport, housing, protecting the oceans, poverty, and clean energy.
However, Greens co-leader James Shaw used his speech to highlight the party's policies to build fast inter-city rail connecting cities to the regions and improve public transport.
He also said the party would invest in getting rooftop solar and batteries into every state home across Aotearoa.
Shaw said the party's plan creates jobs for both a post-Covid and post-carbon world.
"Anything less would be utterly irresponsible towards future generations," he said.
"This is our chance!"
Shaw said the Greens have backed health experts during the pandemic and have listened to the science.
"As much as other parties attempt to make it so, these are not political decisions, they are health decisions," he said.
Meanwhile, fellow co-leader Marama Davidson said the Labour Party could not govern alone.
"Unchallenged decisions can mean bad decisions, and with the Greens at the decision making table, we'll ensure that we truly face the challenges we've been ignoring for too long," she said.
Davidson said Covid-19 had illuminated inequalities in society and her party's plan was grounded in building resilient communities.
"The cracks revealed during Covid-19 will be revealed again, so we must fix these inequalities now," she said.
The more support the Greens get, the bolder Labour would be, she said.
She said the Greens in government had done more for climate action in one term than the last three decades of governments combined, all while addressing inequality.
"But we must go further and faster, especially in our response to Covid-19," she said.
