• Minister for Regulation and Associate Minister of Finance David Seymour delivered a speech to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce this morning. 
• He claimed Labour had moved “radically to the left,” far from Helen Clark’s Labour party. 
• He cited falling productivity and called for regulatory and investment changes. 

ACT leader David Seymour has accused Labour of abandoning “economic orthodoxy”, arguing the party has moved “radically to the left.” 

Speaking at the Auckland Chamber of Commerce as Minister for Regulation and Associate Minister of Finance, Seymour spoke at length about New Zealand’s political landscape. 

He said that National had remained consistent in its policies, while Labour had veered sharply from the centrist approach taken by previous governments. 

“Think about Helen Clark’s Government, and how it contrasts with the opposition today ... Helen Clark’s Government was well to the right of the current opposition. It’s not National that’s changed; they have been consistent. It is Labour who’ve moved radically to the left,” he said. 

Act leader David Seymour; comedian Guy Williams; and Shane and Dot Jones at their Waitangi party. Photos Dean Purcell, supplied 

“We can no longer rely on a cross-party commitment to liberal democracy and economic orthodoxy.” 

He took aim at Labour leader Chris Hipkins, suggesting his political career had been defined by avoiding accountability. 

“Slipperier than an eel fed on sausage rolls, no politician has glided over failure like Chris Hipkins,” he said. 

Seymour framed ACT as a party committed to restoring what he called “common-sense economic policy” and spoke to the importance of regulatory reform. 

“We know this country cannot change its size or distance to market, and better public policy is our best collective hope,” he said. 

Beyond political ideology, Seymour used his speech to push for a four-year parliamentary term and opposition-controlled select committees, arguing these changes would improve legislative scrutiny. 

“The Government is committed to introducing legislation that would put a four-year term to referendum, and make the select committees opposition-controlled,” he said. 

He also reaffirmed ACT’s stance on regulatory reform, pointing to declining productivity figures. 

“In the year to June 2024, GDP per capita fell 2.7%... If productivity growth had continued to grow at 1.4% a year since 2013, productivity, and therefore wages, would today be about 14% higher.” 

Education policy was another focal point, with Seymour praising the success of charter schools. 

“They are proven for raising educational achievement. Last year their achievement data showed students achieving at much higher levels than state schools in core areas of reading, mathematics and spelling.” 

He also warned that restrictive overseas investment rules were holding New Zealand back. 

“The Government intends to simplify our overseas investment rules and I will be making an announcement about this very shortly,” he said. 

Seymour has made headlines the past week, for penning a letter to police during the Polkinghorne trial which Prime Minister Chris Luxon called “ill-advised,” and getting stopped by parliament security for attempting to drive a Land Rover up the Beehive steps.