“While Kiwi households and government departments are tightening their budgets, the Human Rights Commission is throwing its $15 million budget at left-wing activism – the latest being a campaign for a divisive constitution,” says ACT Justice spokesperson Todd Stephenson.

“After it recently hired Claire Charters, a co-author of the radically divisive He Puapua report, the Commission has now held a conference at Auckland University called ‘Designing our Constitution’ for the purpose of designing a ‘Te Tiriti-based constitution’.

“On its Facebook page, the Commission quotes one conference speaker as suggesting ‘constitutional transformation based on honouring te Tiriti o Waitangi’ is ‘inevitable’.

“The Commission has gone far beyond its legislated functions, and is exploiting taxpayer money and the credibility of its official status to promote a divisive interpretation of the Treaty.

“If these left-wing radicals want to agitate for constitutional reform, they should get elected by the people and seek a mandate for that. If they won’t or can’t act democratically, they should stick to helping people who’ve had their basic human rights breached.

“Once a benign entity focus on human rights, the Commission is now a group of left-wing activists masquerading as politically-neutral bureaucrats. The Commission continues to exploit precious taxpayer resources to promote co-governance, and has previously campaigned in support of left-wing causes like benefit hikes, a ‘living wage’, ‘Fair Pay’ Agreements, and hate speech laws.

“The tidiest course of action is to abolish the Commission entirely, commit to political neutrality in the public sector, and leave ideological debates to elected representatives. Its $15 million annual budget could be redirected toward core services, debt reduction, or tax relief for working Kiwis.”

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