Pacific students want help beyond a growing loan bill in New Zealand

A student leader says Labour's debt write-off could help after graduation but rent, food, unpaid placements and family commitments are making it harder for Pacific students to get there in the first place.

For Pacific students, the biggest financial pressure may come long before they have to repay a student loan.

That is the message from Pacific student leader Tautalaleleia Sa’u, after Labour announced it would wipe 10 per cent off eligible student loan balances if it wins the election.

Sa’u, who studies at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington and was a Youth MP for Labour MP Ginny Andersen in 2025, told William Terite on Pacific Mornings the policy would make a difference for some graduates.

"For some, that could mean thousands or hundreds of dollars less to repay, a quicker path towards their financial goals."

But Sa’u says the bigger challenge for many Pacific students is having enough money to stay in study and graduate.

Watch Tautalaleleia Sa’u's full interview below.

"They're worried more about rent, food, transport and supporting their families. So while debt relief does help a bit, we also need to address the barriers that stop students from getting through university in the first place."

Labour's policy would apply to current and future graduates who remain New Zealand-based for tax purposes, did not benefit from Fees Free and still have a student loan. Balances of $2000 or less would be cleared entirely.

Labour estimates the policy would cost $583.4 million over five years.

Will student loans be on the agenda as we head to the election on 7 November. Photo/RNZ/Kate Newton

National has instead promised to cut the compulsory student loan repayment rate from 12 cents to 10 cents in every dollar earned above $24,128 from 1 April 2027.

National campaign chair Simeon Brown has criticised Labour’s plan as "yet another enormous bill on top of more than $18 billion in new spending promises" while ACT leader David Seymour has called it a bribe and questioned who will ultimately carry the cost.

Sa’u says the focus needs to go beyond what graduates owe.

"Our teachers, our nurses, our social workers and our health professionals will spend hundreds of hours on unpaid placements while trying to figure out how they're going to pay rent, groceries and transport costs. These are our essential workers that we need to help keep things going in our public sector."

He says Pacific students can be balancing study with work, family, church and community responsibilities.

"We can get our foot through the door, but what about getting our bodies completely in.” This election is Sa’u's first time voting.

Enroll to vote before 25 October, to ensure you can vote on 7 November. Photo/VNP/Daniela Maoate-Cox

The pressure on students reflects wider concerns among Pacific families. Ninety per cent of respondents to the PMN-Horizon Research Pacific Issues Election Survey say the cost of living will be a major factor in how they vote in this election.

The cost of taking part in tertiary education is also tied to a wider election issue: whether Pacific people can access and take part in the political system itself.

At the Pacific Knowing Election 2026 Project Symposium, in Wainuiomata on Saturday, Samoana Nokise, a Researcher and Community Worker, told PMN News she plans to vote because of the pressure facing Pacific families.

"I need to vote because I need change. I think our families need change, our community needs change and we need people who make these decisions for us to make them with us and with us in mind."

Nokise says access to information and the voting process can be barriers for Pacific communities.

"I've actually brought friends to vote on the day who weren't enrolled, and now that's been taken away."

From left: Samoana Nokise presents data on Pacific people in Aotearoa' with Green MP Teanau Tuiono and Siuga-o-Fao Maria Paula Masoe. Photo/PMN News/Thomas Tarurongo Wynne

She rejects the idea that Pacific and young people are not interested in politics.

"When you're a Pacific person, especially in Aotearoa, you have no choice but to be political.”

Her message to young people is simple. "You should get out and vote because you deserve better. We all deserve better."

Under the new rules, voters must be enrolled before voting starts. The deadline is midnight on Sunday 25 October with advance voting starting the following day. Election day is Saturday 7 November.