“A vote for ACT is a vote to abolish self-serving, taxpayer-funded bureaucracies that don’t deliver for New Zealanders. The latest example? The Human Rights Commission offering $286,900 so they can have a second Chief Executive for the sake of ethnicity,” says ACT Leader David Seymour.

“Not content with having a truly hopeless Commissioner in Paul Hunt, this year the Human Rights Commission has added a Chief Executive, and is now advertising for Tatau-Urutahi – a location flexible position at the Chief Executive level to “advance human rights in a Tiriti-based organisation” for a salary of up to $286,900.

“The only organisation that would see fit to hire two Chief Executives as well as a Commissioner is an organisation spending other peoples’ money. Together, these three roles cost taxpayers almost a million dollars a year in salary alone. It’s time to shut it down.

“The Commission’s highly political manifesto in 2020 called for a new hate speech law, a living wage, raising benefits by 47 percent, “fair pay” agreements, more government departments, two new human rights commissioners, and another public holiday, among a raft of other policies. Paul Hunt has also previously defended gangs and refused to call out international human rights abuses.

“Why should taxpayers fund an organisation only interested in advancing a left-wing agenda?

“ACT would keep the Human Rights Review Tribunal and beef it up. The HRRT is charged with helping people on a case-by-case basis when their actual rights are practically affected, not pontificating about what other people’s rights should be. In my experience as a local MP, the HRRT has been underfunded.

“There are too many organisations in Wellington that exist for the sake of existing. They hoover up as much taxpayer funding as they can get and provide no return. Earlier this week the Ministry for Pacific Peoples hit the news for a $40,000 leaving party. The real scandal is that it cannot point to any achievements other than spending its annual $30.6 million budget.

“ACT would bring an end to wasteful spending, including getting rid of Government roles and agencies that don’t add value.”

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