Skip to content
NZVoteCheckNZVoteCheck home

Te Tiriti, rights and immigration: where every party stands

This sector moves results more than any other in the quiz, and immigration in particular cuts clean across the usual left–right divide.

The place of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in government, the Māori electorates, te reo Māori, and how many people should move here. All positions last verified 13 August 2026.

Find your match in 5 minutesHow positions are sourced

An independent commissioner should be able to block laws that breach Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Te Pāti Māori proposes a Parliamentary Commissioner for Te Tiriti with power to audit and veto non-compliant bills, a 'bottom line' in any coalition talks.

What this means in practice

Te Tiriti o Waitangi is New Zealand's founding agreement, but it isn't entrenched in a written constitution, so what it requires is worked out case by case. Te Pāti Māori proposes a Parliamentary Commissioner for Te Tiriti able to audit and veto bills that breach it, a significant constitutional change.

Supporters say

  • Without protection, Tiriti rights depend entirely on which government is in power.
  • It's an agreement between two parties; one shouldn't be able to redefine it alone.
  • Clear rules reduce the litigation and delay that currently surround Tiriti questions.

Opponents say

  • An unelected commissioner vetoing laws passed by an elected Parliament is a major shift in power.
  • Obligations should be decided by voters through Parliament, not a standing office.
  • Existing settlement processes and the Waitangi Tribunal already do this work.

There should be a binding referendum on whether to keep the Māori electorates.

Seven Māori electorates have existed since 1867. Voters of Māori descent choose whether to enrol on the Māori roll or the general roll.

  • ACT

    Strongly supports

    Supports putting questions of Māori-specific representation to a public vote, consistent with its equal-citizenship framing.

    Treaty Principles Bill

  • Greens

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed, argues a general referendum on Māori representation is inconsistent with Te Tiriti.

    Green Party: Manifesto 2026

  • Labour

    Opposes

    Opposed in direction: it is contesting all seven Māori electorates and treats their future as a matter for Māori. It has not published a specific 2026 commitment on a referendum, so this is inferred from that rather than a stated position.

    2026 NZ general election: party platforms

  • National

    Opposes

    Has not backed a referendum on the Māori seats, though it supports referenda on MMP and a four-year parliamentary term.

    RNZ: NZ First to campaign on Māori seats referendum

  • NZ First

    Strongly supports

    Campaigning for a referendum on the future of the Māori electorates.

    RNZ: NZ First to campaign on Māori seats referendum

  • Te Pāti Māori

    Strongly opposes

    Strongly opposed, actively campaigning to grow the Māori roll and expand Māori representation.

    Te Pāti Māori: Policy

What this means in practice

Seven Māori electorates have existed since 1867. Voters of Māori descent choose whether to enrol on the Māori roll or the general roll. NZ First argues MMP already delivers Māori representation so the seats' original purpose has gone; opponents argue they're a Tiriti guarantee, not a temporary fix.

Supporters say

  • Under MMP, Māori are represented in Parliament well beyond the seven seats.
  • Constitutional arrangements should be decided by voters, not by Parliament alone.
  • The 1986 Royal Commission itself suggested the seats' rationale would weaken under MMP.

Opponents say

  • The seats stem from Te Tiriti, and a majority vote shouldn't be able to remove a minority's guaranteed representation.
  • Māori roll enrolment has been growing, which suggests they're valued by the people who use them.
  • Putting minority representation to a majority vote is itself the problem.

Net migration should be cut significantly to take pressure off housing, roads and hospitals.

This one splits the usual left–right pattern. Labour and NZ First both want lower numbers; National and ACT want more workers and students.

  • ACT

    Opposes

    Wants a market-driven system where employers hire the workers they need, but pairs this with tighter English requirements, a welfare stand-down and an overstayer enforcement unit.

    NZ Herald: ACT's immigration policy

  • Greens

    Strongly opposes

    Opposed to cutting numbers, proposes granting residency to migrants on work visas and expanding humanitarian and family reunification pathways.

    Green Party: Immigration policy

  • Labour

    Strongly supports

    Committed to cutting net migration by roughly 20,000–30,000, partly by reducing international students in low-level courses.

    NZ Herald: Where the parties stand on immigration

  • National

    Strongly opposes

    Wants to increase international student numbers and fast-track residency for Green List occupations by removing the work-to-residence divide.

    NZ Herald: Where the parties stand on immigration

  • NZ First

    Strongly supports

    Long-standing signature policy, has pushed for dramatically lower net migration and criticised its own coalition partners over the India FTA's migration effects.

    NZ Herald: Peters on immigration

  • Te Pāti Māori

    Mixed / no clear position

    No headline net-migration target; frames immigration through Tiriti obligations and the rights of tangata whenua rather than numbers.

    Te Pāti Māori: Policy

What this means in practice

Net migration is arrivals minus departures. It's one of the few economic levers a government can move quickly, and it cuts across the usual left–right divide: Labour and NZ First both want lower numbers, while National and ACT want more workers and students.

Supporters say

  • Infrastructure, housing and health haven't kept pace, and rapid population growth makes shortages worse.
  • High migration can hold wages down in lower-paid work.
  • Some student visas function as a back-door labour route rather than genuine study.

Opponents say

  • Hospitals, aged care, construction and farming already can't fill roles.
  • An ageing population needs working-age people to fund superannuation and health.
  • Migrants start businesses and pay tax; cutting numbers shrinks the economy too.

Non-citizens who commit serious crimes should be deported, and a dedicated unit should track down overstayers.

ACT proposes deporting serious non-citizen offenders, a new overstayer enforcement unit inside Immigration NZ, and a five-year welfare stand-down for new residents.

What this means in practice

Non-citizens can already be deported for serious offending. This asks whether to go further, a dedicated overstayer enforcement unit inside Immigration NZ, and a five-year stand-down before new residents can access welfare.

Supporters say

  • Residency is a privilege, and serious offending is a reasonable reason to withdraw it.
  • Immigration rules mean little if there's no enforcement behind them.
  • New residents should contribute before drawing on welfare.

Opponents say

  • Enforcement units drive people underground where employers can exploit them.
  • Pacific communities carry the memory of the Dawn Raids; this lands differently there.
  • A five-year welfare stand-down leaves legal residents with nothing if they're made redundant or get sick.

Te reo Māori should be actively promoted across government and society, including in the names of public agencies.

Te reo Māori is an official language. The current government has directed agencies to use English-first names and communications.

  • ACT

    Opposes

    Opposes state promotion of language by ethnicity and has campaigned on abolishing demographic ministries. It has not published a specific te reo policy for 2026, so this is inferred from that consistent position rather than a stated commitment.

    ACT: Faster path to surplus, no new taxes

  • Greens

    Strongly supports

    Supports active promotion and protection of te reo Māori as a Tiriti obligation.

    Green Party: Manifesto 2026

  • Labour

    Supports

    Supportive in direction: it would restore Treaty obligations removed by the coalition and opposed the English-first directive. It has not published a standalone te reo policy for 2026, so this is inferred rather than a stated commitment.

    2026 NZ general election: party platforms

  • National

    Mixed / no clear position

    Mixed, supports te reo as an official language and its teaching in schools, but has directed agencies to use English-first names and communications.

    NZ First: English names for government departments

  • NZ First

    Strongly opposes

    Strongly opposed, has campaigned specifically on English-first names for government departments.

    NZ First: English names for government departments

  • Te Pāti Māori

    Strongly supports

    Core policy, normalise te reo across society, invest in community-led revitalisation, and hold the state accountable for language protection.

    Te Pāti Māori: Policy

What this means in practice

Te reo Māori is an official language of New Zealand. The current government has directed agencies to use English-first names and communications, reversing a decade in which departments adopted te reo names. NZ First has campaigned specifically on this.

Supporters say

  • Te reo is unique to New Zealand and won't survive without active support.
  • It's an official language, so the state using it is consistent, not special treatment.
  • Growing numbers of New Zealanders of all backgrounds are learning it.

Opponents say

  • Government communication should be immediately understood by everyone, and English is what nearly everyone reads.
  • Rebranding departments costs money that could go to services.
  • The language should grow because people choose it, not because the state directs it.

Compare another sector

Economy, Tax & Cost of Living

Who pays tax and how much, how big the state should be, and who should own the banks, power companies and supermarkets.

Housing & Renting

Rent rules, state house building, help for first-home buyers, and whether to loosen planning rules to build more.

Health & Education

Free doctor's visits, how schools teach and test, school choice, and whether Māori-led health services should return.

Climate, Energy & Environment

Emissions targets, oil and gas, farming's climate obligations, mining, and river water quality.

Law, Order & Justice

Sentencing, prisons, police numbers, gangs, and whether justice should lean toward punishment or prevention.

Not sure which of these you agree with?

Answer 30 plain-English questions and see which party matches you, and exactly which answers drove the result.

Take the quiz