Cut non-Pacific foreign aid to fund $604m more for Pharmac
What it actually does
National would add $604 million to Pharmac's medicines budget, partly offset by cutting foreign aid outside the Pacific and its administration costs by 10 percent ($431.2 million). The package also lowers the free bowel screening age to 50 and extends free breast screening to 74 by 2029, and adds free cervical screening for women aged 25 to 69.
Source: RNZ · 2026-10
The Trump take
“Stop sending money overseas and buy medicine instead? I invented that. Now pay full price for the beautiful American drugs and we're done.”parody
Why it scored this way
Big government
Cuts foreign aid and MFAT administration, an 'America First'-style move
+1
Likes it
Drug prices
More money for medicines, though still spent through Pharmac's price-controlled model
+1
Likes it
On the same topics
Budget 2024 income tax cuts and landlord interest deductibility
Budget 2024 delivered income tax relief averaging about $3.7 billion a year and restored the ability of residential landlords to deduct mortgage interest. The government said it funded the package partly through public service savings and cancelling some previous programmes.
Cut spending and foreign aid back to 2017 levels
ACT's fiscal plan would return non-welfare spending to 2017 levels (adjusted for inflation and growth), cut the annual operating allowance from $2.4b to $2b, reduce foreign aid to 2017 levels (excluding aid to Ukraine) and abolish 'demographic' ministries. ACT says net core Crown debt would be $12.4b lower than forecast; health, education, defence, police and children's services are exempt.
Disestablishment of the Māori Health Authority
A National 100-day plan commitment, the bill to disestablish Te Aka Whai Ora passed under urgency 68-54 in February 2024, with most of its functions and staff moving to Health New Zealand from 30 June 2024.