"In my mind there is now only one solution left - turn the planes around and make a point to the Australian Government that New Zealand is not the dumping ground for your criminals. Australia should be used to that given what they did with the Tampa all those years ago.

"Waka Kotahi’s new Holiday Journey Prediction Tool sounds like something from a satirical News site. It would be a great source of Christmas amusement if it hadn’t just wasted an unknown amount of taxpayer money," says ACT Transport Spokesperson Simon Court.

The decision by Immigration NZ to deport a young family back to the Philippines for forging food vouchers during lockdown last year is a punishment that is extremely over the top for such circumstances.

"Transport Minister Michael Wood has delivered the worst possible news this week to people affected by years of disruption from City Rail Link construction," says ACT’s Transport spokesperson Simon Court.

The Mayor and Councillors of Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) have today published an open letter to the Minister for Local Government opposing the move to mandate three waters reform.

The Government’s support of a rāhui preventing Kiwis exploring the Whirinaki Conservation Park is a kick in the teeth for tourism businesses who were counting on holidaymakers visiting the region this summer, National’s Tourism spokesperson Todd McClay says.

People who want to get a third ‘booster’ shot of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine shouldn’t have to wait until early January to do so, National’s Covid-19 Response spokesperson, Chris Bishop says.

"Across the country people are finding boosters are available some places but not others, when they should have been available immediately," says ACT Leader David Seymour.

"Only Labour could fail to prioritise residence visas for ICU nurses in the middle of a pandemic when the shortage of ICU nurses is the critical weakness in our response," says ACT Leader David Seymour.

"If the Government wants to know why inflation is through the roof it should look at the very areas it’s piled taxes on," says ACT’s Associate Finance spokesperson Damien Smith.