Labour’s new finance spokesperson looks to Pasifika values to inform her view on the economy.
Almost a year on from the last general election and Mana MP Barbara Edmonds is happy to put the past behind her and look to the future.
“New Zealanders have voted for change. We accept that. We lost the election,” Edmonds says.
“But as we’re seeing time and time again it’s perhaps not the change they wanted.”
Edmond’s is the Labour Party’s new finance spokesperson and as such takes a close interest in the performance of the economy and its impact on communities.
With a background in accounting and law, Edmonds says her job is to keep the government of the day honest, holding them to account.
“When things are tough, you don’t really have time to think about everything else that’s happening,” she says
“Which is why you need a strong opposition. And you need to be able to have different voices pressuring the Government to act.”
And typically, it’s the cost of living crisis which has her attention the most.
“We’re not seeing the support renters need because rents have risen just under 5% in this last quarter, and yet $2.9 billion went towards landlords to help with their interest deductibility,” she says.
Edmonds’ elevation to the finance role has come with little fanfare as the Labour Party under Chris Hipkins’ leadership goes about re-building itself after a devastating election loss.
“The last thing the Labour Party needs to be doing is fighting within itself,” Edmonds says.
“The best thing we do is stay unified, support our leader, and basically get out there to learn and to listen about what we need to do to change and provide a very convincing alternative to New Zealand.
“I think there’s always a tendency for political parties when they lose an election there’s chaos, there’s leadership battles. You’re not seeing that from our Labour team.”
For her part, Edmonds has been busying herself with the finance role and helping to change how Labour is perceived by the public from business owners.
“We have a focus on ensuring our most vulnerable are supported and we will advocate strongly for that. But also, for us, the thing we’ve got to learn is our Pacific people have aspirations to be business owners,” she says.
“So that when we go into the next election we have those strong small business support policies available to help fulfil those aspirations and support small businesses.”
In the meantime Edmonds says support for the community needs to come from each other because it’s not coming from the current government.
“Our Pacific people are used to this. The way we bring our families up is we depend on each other. We have that ability to, when times are tough, we come together as a family to support each other,” she says.
“I would say this is the time we should be supporting each other. I would say go and check a financial budget provider… but unfortunately the National Government is cutting back on them… but try and find one if that’s what you need to sort that budget for you.”
And while many people are feeling the economic pinch today, Edmonds is also focussed on the future.
“For me, being the first Pacific Finance spokesperson for the Labour Party, I’m looking longer than just now. I’m looking at my children and my children’s children. Because that’s how we think as Pacific People; it’s intergenerationally,” she says.
“So that intergenerational thinking is really important to me and I think it’s very much grounded in the way that I was brought up as a Pacific person.”
