“Common sense, driven by Groundswell NZ, seems to be finally permeating the He Waka Eke Noa space. A tax on the world’s most efficient farmers is counterproductive to food security, pricing, and would drive emissions offshore and in greater volume for no climate gain. In fact it would exacerbate it,” Groundswell NZ co-founder Laurie Paterson says.

“Groundswell NZ welcome National’s announcement that they are withdrawing support from He Waka Eke Noa and ACT’s confirmation that they too remain opposed to it.

“In an election year, this firmly puts the ball in Labour’s court to decide if they will finally listen to farmers as well or if they’ll plough on ahead with unworkable regulations and taxing food producers.”

“We were told repeatedly that our mission to stop the Farming Tax was a waste of time as Labour had a majority in Parliament and would do whatever it wanted. To a point that is right. But we weren’t going to give up just because the odds were against us. We just pushed on and got a lot of people on board and if you turn up at Parliament with 102,000 signatures, the politicians are inclined to take a bit of notice,” Groundswell NZ co-founder Bryce McKenzie says.

“We thank every single person who signed our petition and stood up against He Waka Eke Noa. The battle is far from over, but the Farming Tax has been dealt a blow today.”

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