ACT open to trial of visa-free travel for Sāmoa, Seymour says

ACT Party leader David Seymour says he would be open to testing visa-free travel for Sāmoa for a year but the arrangement would be cancelled if people abused the conditions.

Seymour made the comments during his fortnightly political update with Pacific Mornings host William Terite as pressure grows on political parties to set out their positions on easier travel for Pacific people.

Asked about Labour's proposal to expand visa-waiver access to Pacific nationals, Seymour said ACT would take a trial approach.

“I'd be interested in saying, look, let's start this and if everybody who gets this visa-free access uses it responsibly and no one abuses it, then it keeps going.”

He later gave Sāmoa as an example.

“So as a result, we like to protect our border but I don't see why we shouldn't give a country a chance, why we shouldn't say, look, visa-free access for Sāmoa for a year.

Watch David Seymour's full interview below.

"But if anybody takes advantage of that and doesn't follow the terms of coming in and out, then we'll cancel it.”

Seymour's comments come as Pacific campaigners continue to push for easier travel between New Zealand and Pacific countries.

Earlier this year, Anae Arthur Anae delivered a petition of almost 50,000 signatures to Parliament calling for easier visa access for Pacific people.

Listen to Anae Arthur Anae's full interview below.

“Pacific people have been mistreated for too long,” Anae told Terite after Labour announced its visa-waiver proposal last week.

He said the focus was now on whether political promises would actually be delivered.

When Terite asked whether that amounted to a policy announcement, Seymour said it did not. “No, I'm just thinking logically.”

The PMN News-Horizon Research Pacific Issues Election Survey found 74 per cent of Pacific respondents said ACT did not understand Pacific communities well.

Cost of living was the biggest issue influencing voting intentions with nine in 10 respondents saying it would play a role in their decision.

Seymour said visa-free access should be based on the same rules for all countries. He argued that New Zealand's current approach is linked to the risk of people overstaying.

“You don't want discrimination, you just want a fair deal where every country gets treated the same.”

Tongan community leader Pakilau Manase Lua welcomed Labour's proposal but said Pacific communities had heard promises before.

“It’s good news, but it’s also an election year, so I am taking it with a grain of salt,” Pakilau told Terite. “The truth is in the pudding. We need to see some real action.”

He said the announcement followed years of pressure from Pacific communities and campaigners.

Aotearoa already has a limited visa-free pathway for some Pacific travellers coming through Australia while visitor visa fees for eligible Pacific nationals were reduced for 12 months from June.

Seymour also said ACT's biggest disappointment from the current term was that the Government had not made enough savings.

Listen to Pakilau Manase Lua's full interview below.

“We didn't save enough money.” He said the Government was still borrowing $14 billion and argued that younger generations would carry the cost.

“Pacific people are younger on average. More of the debt that's been borrowed to keep things going today will go on to Pacific people, like proportionally. I think that's unfair.”

For Deacon Sanele Poluleuligaga, Deputy Chair of the Justice and Peace Commission, the visa issue is about more than paperwork.

He says Pacific families can face long delays trying to travel to New Zealand when a loved one dies.

“When someone passed away over here in New Zealand, it’s a very long process for our families to come over just to attend a funeral for our loved ones and say farewell,” he told Terite.

Poluleuligaga was involved in the Pacific Justice petition presented to Parliament and says Pacific communities have spent years putting their concerns to MPs through submissions and petitions.

Listen to Reverend Deacon Sanele Poluleuligaga's full interview below.

Seymour is also campaigning on a smaller government, lower taxes and less regulation as ACT heads into the election campaign.

He said ACT's aim was to “unlock New Zealand's potential” through economic growth rather than higher taxes.

For Pacific voters, the question now is how parties' competing immigration and economic policies would affect families, travel and the cost of living.

New Zealanders head to the polls on 7 November.

Watch Auckland University Law School's Dr Suliana Mone's full interview below.