Chris Hipkins will head into his first Labour conference as leader this weekend with an impressive track record of non-delivery, says National’s campaign chair Chris Bishop.

Since taking over as leader in January, Hipkins has made a raft of promises and delivered on none.

“He declared his government would be focused on the bread-and-butter issues and would target inflation – yet we have food prices at their highest since 1987.

“He promised to reduce Labour’s reliance of consultants, yet consultant spending is up by nearly $500 million.

“He promised the new Education Minister would be focused on getting kids back to school – now barely 50 percent of kids are attending school regularly.

“He claimed the health system was in better shape than it was three years ago – yet New Zealanders are waiting even longer in emergency departments, to get surgery and to see specialists.

“He claimed reports of gang activity in the Hawke’s Bay were unsubstantiated – yet his police minister was messaging the Police Commissioner saying crime in the region was “pretty serious”.

“His Police Minister claims New Zealanders feel safe – yet retail crime is up 99 per cent, serious assaults are up 121 per cent and there’s a ram raid every 15 hours.

“He also claimed Labour has parked up the Income Insurance Scheme (Jobs Tax) yet MBIE is recruiting for roles for it.

“New Zealand cannot trust or afford another three years of Chris Hipkins’ Labour Government.

“National will fix the economy so we can lower the cost-of-living, lift incomes, and afford the public services Kiwis deserve and Get New Zealand Back on Track.”

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