The new government will be able to represent Pasifika New Zealanders even without any Pacific MPs, National Party leader and Prime Minister-elect Christopher Luxon said this morning.
It comes after Angee Nicholas won Te Atatū on Election Day before it flipped after special votes were counted, removing her from Parliament. She was set to be the party's sole Pacific MP before the flip.
Asked how the party will represent Pasifika, Luxon told Breakfast: "We're gonna make sure we deliver for them."
"We will have a Pacific peoples spokesperson – but what I'd say is, we made very good progress with the Pacific community this year and this election.
"We think we attracted a lot of younger Pasifika people to National, which is great.
"We've had a huge energy from within the party from the Pacific community."
But when asked who Pasifika voters see representing themselves in the party, Luxon could only name National candidates who won't become MPs.
"We've had people like Agnes Loheni, we've had people like Angee Nicholas, Rosemary Bourke, they've done exceptionally well in those seats," he said. "We can deliver for them still, and that's the point.
"When you talk to Pacific people, they still have the same concerns."
Asked about potential cuts to the Ministry for Pacific Peoples, Luxon said there will be changes to the public sector across the board.
"Every single agency is expected to deliver and a $40,000 farewell wasn't a great investment, I thought, of taxpayers' money.
"I think it's an important ministry, but it needs to deliver," Luxon said.
He wouldn't commit to fully funding the ministry's existing programmes.
"If the programmes don't work, then we're not gonna fund programmes. That's not particular to the Pacific Peoples Ministry, it's actually common to every aspect of public service ministries," he said.
"What's the point of taking taxpayers' money [and] putting it behind programmes that aren't working?
"I'd sooner identify the programmes that are and put more money behind that."
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