Drug law, housing and welfare settings reflect very different views about the role of the state.
A 2020 referendum on legalising recreational cannabis narrowly failed. Medicinal cannabis is legal with a prescription.
UnconfirmedACT has no official cannabis policy. Seymour has previously said he would personally support legalisation but called it not a political priority. Source
The Greens' drug policy is to legally regulate cannabis for personal use, with an age limit, as part of a harm-reduction approach. Source
UnconfirmedLabour has no current policy to legalise cannabis; it stayed neutral at the 2020 referendum and has not revived the issue since. Source
Luxon has said National would not legalise or decriminalise cannabis, citing the 2020 referendum result. Source
UnconfirmedNZ First has said cannabis law change should be decided by the public, and the 2020 referendum rejected legalisation; no current support for reform was found. Source
UnconfirmedTe Pāti Māori has called for cannabis decriminalisation and clearing low-level convictions, though a full legal market was not explicitly found in its policy. Source
Opportunity's crime policy includes regulating recreational cannabis use to undercut organised crime and reduce youth imprisonment. Source
Kāinga Ora is the main public housing provider. Its building programme has been scaled back in favour of community housing providers and private development.
ACT has criticised Kāinga Ora spending and argues Labour's state housing plan would add to government debt. Source
The Greens' 2026 housing platform pledges tens of thousands of new public homes alongside rent caps and more funding for community housing. Source
Labour proposes $2.9 billion in capital for Kāinga Ora to deliver at least 6,000 extra social housing places over four years, funded from future Budget allowances. Source
National's government moved to cut Kāinga Ora's debt and slow its building, favouring community housing providers and fiscal restraint over large state builds. Source
UnconfirmedNo clear public position found on a large state housing build funded by borrowing; NZ First has been part of the government restraining Kāinga Ora. Source
UnconfirmedTe Pāti Māori has made housing a central 2026 campaign issue and criticised the government's housing record, though a costed state house build target was not found. Source
Opportunity would direct Kāinga Ora to build housing suited to each region and offer low-cost finance to other providers, but does not commit to a large borrowing-funded build. Source
Main benefits were linked to wage growth in 2023, then switched back to inflation. Wages usually grow faster than prices over time.
ACT supported the coalition's 2024 law returning main benefit increases to inflation indexation instead of wage growth. Source
The Greens want benefits raised to liveable levels and indexed to whichever is higher of wage growth or inflation. Source
Labour introduced wage indexation in 2019 and opposed the 2024 switch back to inflation, though a 2026 pledge to restore it was not found. Source
National's government legislated in 2024 to index main benefits to inflation rather than wages, citing savings. Source
NZ First voted with the coalition in 2024 to index main benefits to inflation rather than wage growth. Source
Te Pāti Māori criticised the 2024 move to inflation indexation as harmful to whānau, implying support for wage-linked increases. Source
UnconfirmedOpportunity proposes a Citizen's Income replacing most benefits but does not say whether it would rise with wages or prices. Source