Earnest speeches delay the first politics in Parliament's year

Traditionally, the Parliamentary year begins with the often raucous debate on the Prime Minister's Statement, with MPs refreshed and champing at the bit to get stuck into the political year.

Instead the first sitting day of 2026 opened on a more sombre note, with a motion on recent weather events.

When major events like these occur, it's typical for the House to pause its usual business and formally acknowledge them through a 'government motion without notice', as happened this week. In set-piece proceedings like this, one can expect party leaders to adopt what might be their own interpretation of the earnest statesperson. The Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, who gave the first and second offerings of the motion, followed this familiar blueprint, sharing thoughts, prayers, and condolences.

In previous motions acknowledging tragic events, there have sometimes been one or more speakers who rock the boat slightly, including - alongside their condolences - the pointing of a finger. What their targets might call "making it political".

In the past, the Green Party and Te Pāti Māori have often been willing to include remarks that throw shade at their political opponents. So when co-leader Marama Davidson rose to offer her party's contribution, there may have been some nervousness in the House that fingers were indeed about to be pointed.

Davidson's remarks however, proved fairly benign. She offered tautoko for the sentiments of compassion from Luxon and Hipkins, while quite politely enquiring whether that compassion was being matched by preparedness.

"We absolutely, at all times, and especially when there is loss, need to look at ourselves honestly and ask: are we sure that the compassion and care that the people on the ground doing the mahi are demonstrating is matched by the wisdom, the foresight, the planning, and the care that we here in the House, are we showing likewise?"

Perhaps anticipating a more pointed political contribution from the Greens, ACT's Cameron Luxton appeared to have pre-penned his speech to include a counterattack against anyone 'politicising' the recent weather events.

"New Zealand has always had extreme weather," the ACT first-termer said. "We have always had slips - no law, no slogan, and no protest can stop rain from falling and hills from moving. What can save lives is practical action, sound land management, proper hazard identification, robust safety practices, and effective emergency response. Those are the questions that matter if we want fewer families grieving in the future. None of them involved trying to change the weather. What happened in the Mount was a tragedy. People lost their lives. Families are grieving and that must come first. If we are serious about honouring those who died, we will focus on evidence, engineering, and preparedness-accountability, not ideology."

Like Luxton, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters also appeared to have prepared a counter - finger point to a finger point that ultimately wasn't manifested.

"The measures required to help improve the resilience of our communities require cool heads, calm analysis, and working with the facts. That can be frustrating for some who want to jump to immediate solutions and who are quick to apportion blame. There has been an alarming degree of so-called experts, commentators, and, dare we say, some of those in the media, who are guilty of being Monday morning quarterbacks. It's appalling that, with the bodies of victims still to be recovered, some have rushed to be adjudicators based not on fact but on emotion and hot reckons."

The motion was rounded out with remarks from Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi who asserted where resources and assistance must be directed.

"Why is it that we have to fly in there to have a look at things? Talk to those communities, send the funds straight to them, start building resilience in those communities, because it's their urupā, because it's their marae, because it's their homes, it's their whenua, it's their moana," Waititi said.

While stopping short of directly pointing fingers and naming names, the MP for Waiariki probably made the most pointed, but still relatively innocuous remark of the motion. "Yes, as human beings, we do have a responsibility. As human beings - and some of the capitalist ideas here in Aotearoa - the responsibility lies in this room."

Once all parties had taken a call on the motion, the House moved on to the Debate on the Prime Minister's Statement. In a sudden shift in tone, the chamber moved from a sombre vigil to the raucous debating floor we've all come to expect, for better or worse.

To listen to audio version of this story, click the link near the top of the page.

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