By Rebel News | Created at 2025-03-31 01:56:09 | Updated at 2025-04-01 19:29:00
1 day ago
New Zealand's growing social divisions have been laid bare in a new report, raising concerns that the country's democracy is under increasing strain.
While former prime minister Jacinda Ardern continues to be praised internationally as a model leader, at home her government's policies have left the nation more divided — particularly along class and racial lines.
The report, written by economists Shamubeel Eaqub and Rosie Collins for the Helen Clark Foundation, highlights widening fractures in New Zealand society, worsened by poverty and political polarisation.
Research firm Talbot Mills surveyed 2631 people, with the findings painting a bleak picture of declining trust in government and increasing dissatisfaction with democracy.
Speaking to Q+A, Eaqub warned that New Zealanders must address growing divisions before they spiral further. “If we’re going to see increasing polarisation, we’re going to see more volatile politics, less certainty around policies, and that means business, community and life becomes unpredictable,” he said. “And our democracy, which is the bedrock of how we run this place, comes under pressure.”
By comparison, New Zealand performed poorly next to Australia in all aspects measured. “We sucked,” Eaqub said bluntly, adding that the most concerning divisions were based on poverty, political allegiances, and ethnicity. “There are these fractures in our society that are much more widespread than they are in Australia.”
We had an authoritarian leader in @jacindaardern and I’d argue it’s in large part thanks to her reign that NZ’s social cohesion is shot. https://t.co/dCkAOxcMYW
— Ro Edge (@rosey_nz) March 30, 2025The report found 81% of respondents supported democracy, but a third believed a "strong leader" who bypasses Parliament and elections would be a good way to govern. Among men under 44, that number climbed to 48%.
“There’s been an extraordinary fracturing, and I think people don’t see that their interests, their values, are being represented,” Eaqub said. “It’s not good enough to say that what’s happening in America is not going to happen here because that’s exactly what we see in the data.”
Trust in government was also alarmingly low, with fewer than half of respondents believing Wellington “always” or “mostly” did the right thing. “It’s extraordinarily critical. If we can’t trust the leaders who are there to represent us, how can we have faith in our institutions?”
Immigration was another major point of concern, with New Zealanders expressing lower levels of support for migrants compared to Australians. “Immigration has always been the easy safety valve for our governments to grow the economy when everything else has failed. It was the cheap shot to the economy,” Eaqub said. “I think what we’re seeing is New Zealanders saying we’re not comfortable with that any more.”
Meanwhile, only 32% of respondents were satisfied with their financial situation, with a quarter sometimes skipping meals due to financial hardship — twice the rate seen in Australia.
“I think we do have a real problem with poverty in New Zealand, and poverty strips away people’s dignity and their ability to connect with their communities and society,” Eaqub said.
Despite Ardern’s continued adulation on the global stage, her government’s policies appear to have left a nation struggling with deepening fractures that show no signs of healing.
