We’ve had an amazing week with the Prime Minister, Nicola Willis, Mark Mitchell and Louise Upston all coming to town to support our local Kapiti Campaign. And on Sunday we had over 100 people out in support. I’m lucky to have such a strong and energised team who believe in me and in National, and it’s not too late if you want to join us this weekend. Just let me know and I’ll share the details.

Did you see the latest school results?

Today’s incredible PAT results show Kiwi kids are making significant progress in maths, with four months of additional learning progress in the last two years, alongside the first improvement in reading comprehension since 2017.

Across multiple independent assessments, we’re seeing improvements in reading, writing and maths achievement. After years of declining results, the tide is turning.

This isn’t happening by accident. National has a six-point plan to lift achievement, and we’re delivering it, including an hour a day of reading, writing and maths, a clearer curriculum, better teaching resources and extra support for children falling behind.

Despite this progress, Chris Hipkins wants to scrap the hour-a-day requirement. He’s out of touch with parents who support keeping it. We cannot afford to go backwards.; we need to stick with the team and that plan that is working.

What’s at stake for Kapiti this year

You might have seen this post about what we’ve done in the last three years, and what we’ll do next. If you haven’t, check it out!

We need to maintain the same responsible approach to living within our means and getting debt, inflation, and interest rates down. We are doing that and the plan is working. $50 billion in savings, $15 billion less debt than treasury expected at the budget, 220,000 extra new jobs forecast by 2030, and inflation below 2% next year. I know it’s been tough but these are all great signs. We need to keep this progress going.

By making smart choices, we are still delivering for Kapiti:

  • Ō2NL expressway to Levin is under construction, on time and on budget.
  • New electric trains are being built and will arrive at the end of 2028 and they will stop at Ōtaki, Levin and Palmerston North 7 days a week.
  • A new cancer clinic is coming for Kapiti so patients can get faster care, closer to home. The BreastScreen clinic is open, there are 66 newly funded medications, and expanded access for breast- and bowel-cancer screening. We’re promising an extra $604 million for Pharmac to fund more medications, and free cervical screening.
  • We are capping council rates to keep costs down – don’t vote for the people who put rates up by 52% in six years!
  • Six new classrooms and six schools getting solar on the roof. Every primary school has (or will soon get) a new Learning Support Coordinator to help students who need a bit of extra support, and every single school gets a big funding boost for their property, so more of their operational budget goes directly to the classroom.
  • And I continue to serve local families and help them when they need it most.

On top of this, you can read all our policies here (I’m particularly proud of my Firefighter Policy!!), and highlights include:

  • Kiwisaver changes to give you more financial security in retirement,
  • Support for locally-owned businesses
  • Modernising Paid Parental Leave to give parents more support
  • Home Energy Fund to make solar, batteries and heat pumps more affordable
  • Growing our economy through expanded trade and investment
  • Law and order improvements to keep our communities safer
  • The next phase of our education policy like screens out of ECE and NCEA being replaced
  • Supporting our Firefighters, and
  • No new taxes.

Election Debates

There are still plenty of chances left to come and hear from me. The debates listed before are one, and the remaining street corner meetings over the next two weeks are another. Details:

I’m working hard to earn your support this year, and I’d love you to vote for me, and for National, at this year’s election.