Seven parties · Ten policy tests · 10 September 2026
There is room for agreement. See where the parties meet our plan to close the gap, where the instruments differ, and what we could work on together.
Benchmarked against our proposal. The ranking measures policy similarity—not which party is “best for New Zealand”. Read the scope and limits.
The comparison
Documented match with our economic programme, out of 100. Points reflect our judgement of policy similarity, not predicted results.
Solid bar: documented match. Hatched bar: unscored weight. Unscored topics earn no confirmed points; they are not opposition. Close scores do not establish a meaningful order.
Read the pattern, not the decimal. National and Opportunity are effectively a leading pair on these tests. Labour, the Greens and ACT form a second cluster. Their strengths—and their conflicts with our plan—are different.
We require evidence covering at least 70% of the selected topic weights for an overall rank. This is a minimum research threshold, not a quality rating.
Room for agreement
These are our proposed areas for discussion. No party has agreed to them.
National, ACT and Opportunity share substantial elements of a supply-led approach. The Greens and Te Pāti Māori also support more housing. Zoning, infrastructure funding and procurement offer practical negotiating ground.
Compare housing positionsNational, Opportunity and NZ First all propose compulsory KiwiSaver with higher contributions. The next discussion is the rate, transition, household affordability and how it fits with Super.
Compare retirement positionsLabour’s GP-practice and data-centre proposals create concrete overlap. National and the Greens also have health-capacity policies. A useful agreement could specify additional capacity, who pays and how success is measured.
Compare service and energy positionsThese are interpretations of the linked policies below, not forecasts of coalition willingness.
Side by side
Close on supply, investment, saving and teaching; rejects the tax switch.
Housing and infrastructure supply, renewable and backup generation, compulsory KiwiSaver, structured literacy and healthcare capacity.
No new taxes rules out our CGT-funded switch. Housing density rules, Super timing and the conditions on large power loads also differ.
Preserve useful housing reforms and structured teaching; agree on infrastructure funding, retirement saving and transparent service outcomes.
Next New Zealand
A broad realised capital gains tax, excluding the family home and KiwiSaver. Certified receipts fund a company-tax cut to 25% and wage-indexed income-tax thresholds. Keep Investment Boost and easier overseas investment.
Our proposalNational
Commits to no new taxes; its current programme promotes business investment and lower tax.
Investment objectives overlap, but the pledge excludes the new CGT that funds our company-tax and threshold reform.
Next New Zealand
Three storeys as of right in the six largest cities; six near rapid transit. A $2bn infrastructure bank lends against targeted rates. Maintain assets, publish project costs and preserve useful planning reform.
Our proposalNational
Going for Housing Growth combines land supply, infrastructure finance and council incentives.
Strong supply overlap. MDRS opt-outs and strategic-corridor density differ from our guaranteed three/six-storey rules; funding tools also differ.
Next New Zealand
Remove entry barriers, strengthen open banking and allow divestiture after demonstrated harm and a net-benefit test. Test gentailer separation before using it. Grow Kiwibank with private capital.
Our proposalNational
Promotes grocery entry and open banking to strengthen competition.
Entry and banking reform overlap; the cited programme does not establish our conditional divestiture and gentailer-separation test.
Next New Zealand
Faster renewable consenting, firm backup including an LNG bridge, and repayable solar finance. Loads above 50MW must bring firmed supply or equivalent flexibility and pay their network and water costs.
Our proposalNational
Supports faster renewable generation and firm backup supply.
Substantial supply-side overlap; the programme reviewed does not establish every element of our binding 50MW additionality and cost rule.
Next New Zealand
Compulsory KiwiSaver: 5% employee plus 5% employer within three years of our first 2030 Budget. Protect over-55s; raise Super’s age from 2036 to 67 in 2047, then link to longevity.
Our proposalNational
Compulsory KiwiSaver from July 2028, rising to 6% each by 2032; reported Super-age transition begins in 2044.
Close mechanisms. Contributions are higher and earlier than ours; Super’s age starts rising later.
Next New Zealand
Build capacity and retain clinicians, with targeted loan relief trials and nurse practitioners. Start appointments within seven days in 40 underserved areas, with published access measures.
Our proposalNational
Expands treatment capacity through public and private provision and health targets.
Capacity and measurable delivery overlap. Our underserved-area access rollout and retention trial are different interventions.
Next New Zealand
Keep structured literacy, maths and explicit teaching. Fund small-group tutoring for 40,000 pupils and teacher coaching. Stabilise qualifications and reward apprenticeship completion.
Our proposalNational
Structured reading and maths, an hour of each core subject daily, and replacement qualifications.
Strong teaching overlap. We add scaled tutoring and place a firmer constraint on changing qualifications during a cohort.
Next New Zealand
Stage permanent commitments behind identified funding and certified receipts. Count no assumed efficiency or growth dividend. Separate operating and capital costs; publish outcomes and unresolved costs.
Our proposalNational
Responsibility Rules target surplus, debt control and a lower spending share.
Discipline overlaps; fiscal targets alone do not match our commitment-level funding gates or certified tax-receipts rule.
Next New Zealand
Keep net zero and a credible ETS cap. Start agricultural measurement and technology trials, with a 2030 pricing backstop if needed. Publish adaptation responsibilities and cost sharing.
Our proposalNational
The January 2026 programme presented by National minister Simon Watts retains net zero and emissions budgets, but removes on-farm pricing by 2030.
Net zero and technology investment overlap. Removing the 2030 pricing commitment differs from our pre-announced backstop if verified progress falls short. This scores the current governing programme, not an old party webpage.
Next New Zealand
A three-year population and capacity plan covering all flows, with health and construction pathways, portable worker visas and enforcement against exploitation. No arbitrary net-migration quota.
Our proposalNational
New skilled residence pathways and stronger immigration enforcement form part of its current programme.
Skills and exploitation enforcement overlap; the reviewed policies do not establish our three-year capacity plan or general worker portability.
The whole picture
Choose a score to read the policy and reasoning above. On smaller screens, scroll the table sideways.
| Topic | Weight | Opportunity | National | Labour | ACT | Greens | NZ First | Te Pāti Māori |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tax & productive capital | 18% | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ? | 1 |
| Homes & infrastructure | 18% | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 | ? | 2 |
| Competition & prices | 12% | 3 | 2 | ? | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| Power & large new loads | 12% | 2 | 3 | 3 | ? | 2 | ? | ? |
| Saving & superannuation | 10% | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | ? |
| Health access & workforce | 8% | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | ? | 2 |
| Teaching & skills | 6% | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | ? | 1 |
| Funding & accountability | 8% | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ? | ? |
| Climate & adaptation | 4% | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 3 | ? | 1 |
| Migration & capacity | 4% | 2 | 2 | ? | 2 | 2 | ? | ? |
4 close match · 3 substantial overlap · 2 mixed or different tools · 1 limited overlap · 0 explicit opposition · ? insufficient verified evidence.
Open method
Similarity to the economic prescriptions on this site, across the six moves plus retirement, fiscal discipline, climate and migration. This is our editorial assessment, not independent economic modelling, a voting recommendation or a prediction of delivery.
The six parliamentary parties and Opportunity are included. Smaller parties are outside this first review. Treaty and constitutional arrangements, defence, justice, pay equity, childcare and other commitments need separate comparisons; they are not quietly folded into an economic score.
For each topic: weight × score ÷ 4. Add the points. The default weights prioritise tax and housing, then competition and energy. “Every topic equally” gives each 10%. They are stated editorial priorities, not estimated GDP effects.
Unknown topics contribute no documented points and remain visibly unresolved. A party’s possible total runs from its documented points to those points plus the unresolved weight. This is an evidence range, not a statistical confidence interval. We do not rank parties with less than 70% coverage.
Snapshot checked on 10 September 2026. Party policy pages and dated announcements take priority. Current governing programmes are identified as such; coalition membership alone earns no credit. Where primary detail was unavailable, the September retirement comparison from Local Matters is explicitly linked. An announcement is not proof that its funding or results will materialise.
Evidence coverage means we can make a judgement on a topic; it does not mean every sub-policy has been announced. Near scores are effectively a cluster. Weight changes and new announcements can change the order.
Our tax receipts, delivery capacity and commercialisation strategy also need testing. Read the commitments register and stated gaps alongside this comparison.