An economically reckless Budget 2026 falls short on the climate and nature investment needed to genuinely “secure New Zealand’s future” and cuts conservation further to the bone while the country faces growing climate risk and biodiversity losses,” says WWF-New Zealand.
“If the Government’s approach is that there will be ‘no splashing the cash’, it should recognise that failing to invest in climate resilience and nature restoration now will ultimately cost New Zealand far more in the long run,” says WWF-New Zealand spokesperson Caitlin Owers.
“You cannot legitimately claim to be securing New Zealand’s future while eviscerating the very systems that keep our economy, communities and environment resilient,” she says.
“A genuinely ‘grown-up’ approach to economic management would recognise that healthy ecosystems and a stable climate are critical to New Zealand’s economic wellbeing. In the budgetary context, this means investment to confront long-term risks like climate change and biodiversity loss, not continuing to push these costs onto future generations.
“Conservation and the environment are absent from the Government’s list of priorities and DOC is being forced to scale back predator control work and cut down on essential maintenance of visitor assets. This is deeply short-sighted for a country that relies so heavily on nature and nature-based tourism for its prosperity.
“With the baseline swap of international visitor levy revenue for core funding, the Government is now increasingly relying on international visitors to prop up business-as-usual conservation work. What’s more, DOC is now looking at a structural funding deficit for conservation of almost $400 million over the next four years. This should be deeply troubling to all New Zealanders.”
“The boost for wilding pine control and investment in a new centralised environmental data platform and national flood mapping are positive steps. You cannot manage what you do not measure, and in a biodiversity crisis, effective environmental monitoring and management are crucial to preventing extinction and reversing decline.
“But these steps alone should not mask this Government’s egregious underinvestment in climate and nature protection. Let’s face it, this Budget allocates more funding to a single new highway than to upgrading New Zealand’s entire rail network. This is a telling reflection of the Government’s skewed priorities and fundamental incompetence when it comes to matters of nature and the economy.”
WWF-New Zealand’s economic assessment with EY New Zealand revealed that investing in the protection and restoration of nature could save Aotearoa New Zealand more than $270 billion over the next 50 years. Investing in new marine protected areas to provide safe havens for ocean wildlife, restoring degraded wetlands and peatlands, and expanding native forest cover would all bring huge benefits to the economy.
“Nature is not a ‘nice to have’ to be dealt with once other priorities are ticked off. New Zealand’s economy, global reputation, tourism sector, primary industries, and communities all depend on a healthy natural environment,” says Owers.
“Investing in protecting nature and preparing for climate change isn’t a ‘lolly scramble’. It’s responsible and strategic investment in Aotearoa’s future.