on the second day of campaigning, imnofox spoke to John Campbell on RNZ to discuss the Waikato by-election

Good afternoon to you, imnofox. How are you today?

“Kia ora, John. I’m good, I’m well, yeah. Looking forward to this strong contest.”

You’ve kicked off the campaign with a strong commitment to end mining on the Karangahake conservation land. What do you think about the lack of commitments from any other party?

“Well, Greens have long stood for no mining on conservation land, and we recognise the fight of those in the Coromandel to protect this beautiful land from destructive exploitation. Most of the Coromandel Peninsula is already protected from mining, thanks to a member’s bill passed by the Honourable Judith Tizard in 1997. I’m quite proud to announce today that I have introduced a new member’s bill just last night to extend the mining-free area of the Coromandel peninsula down south to encompass the Karangahake conservation land. The outgoing National Party Minister for the Environment had the opportunity to take action, but did absolutely nothing. National has held this portfolio since the start of last term, and have absolutely ignored the community. PineappleCrusher may talk big game over our dirty rivers, but it’s clear the environment is no priority for that party. There’s only one candidate in this race who is listening to the community, already taking action on the big issues that face the Waikato electorate, and that’s KilroyNZ.”

There’s an interesting range of candidates in this by-election, including TOP and the Socialists. Does that pose a challenge for the Greens?

“Oh John- look- we know that the Greens are the only party that can properly represent the real concerns and issues facing the Waikato electorate, where environmental degradation has run amok. We know that voters want a sensible, proven choice- not some unproven radicals, whether from the Socialists, TOP, or the bordering-on-fascism Reform party. I am confident that our progressive and ambitious plans for Waikato will cut through the noise of these other distractions.”

**The Greens are running a highly environmental campaign in this by-election, contrasting with the high focus on welfare and transport seen in previous elections. Is there any reason for that?”

“I’m never going to let issues such as social justice and clean green transport fall to the wayside, because it’s all part of the same holistic Green vision for Aotearoa New Zealand. There are huge environmental challenges in the region. We’ve already discussed the mining in the Karangahake conservation land, but there’s also the challenge of starting to clean up the Waikato River. That’s a river that is literally unsafe to swim in, with tens of thousands of New Zealanders getting sick from that river every year, and it could be up to 222 times higher than that, because most cases like that go unreported to the DHB. Landcorp has been in the process of converting 25,700 hectares of pine forest in the upper Waikato to dairy farms, with plans to introduce another 30,000 cows to the environment, pushing the Waikato River to its pollution limits. We know that we’re reaching peak cow, even the Honourable Nathan Guy admitted so. Real action needs to be taken, and that includes putting a moratorium on new dairy farm conversions, a move supported by Waikato Federated Farmers. There’s also big issues regarding waste. Yesterday I was out in Kerepehi, where I visited the Waste Management plant where old tyres are just piling up, because there’s no money in recycling them. That’s bad for the planet, and these piles of old tyres are also a notable fire hazard. That’s another big challenge that needs to be tackled, and the government has the means to do so, they just choose not to.”

What do you say to those who might be voting for PineappleCrusher?

“I’d just say, look at what the Nats have delivered Waikato. They’ve delivered more mining, dirtier rivers, greater poverty, they’ve signed us back up to the TPPA- a deal that they admit will hurt Waikato workers, they slashed hundreds of millions of dollars of investment into sustainable farming- the kind that doesn’t make the Waikato River a health hazard, and halved DOC’s budget, letting pest populations grow and our native species diminish. Why vote for that, when you could vote for a common sense community-first Green candidate? KilroyNZ’s vision for Waikato is a vision where our conservation land is protected from exploitation, whether by mining or by introduced pests, where our most vulnerable people are given a decent chance at life, where all of our children get a quality education, and where every New Zealander gets to live in a warm, loving home.”

I’m afraid that’s all we’ve got time for today, and I’m sure you want to get back out on the campaign trail anyway. Thanks for speaking to us today!

“No worries, it’s my pleasure”

with the interview over, imnofox left the Auckland studio and quickly speed-cycled back to the Waikato electorate to continuing a hard day’s doorknocking