Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
National has announced plans to extend paid parental leave from 26 to 30 weeks, but families are going to have to wait years to see the full benefit. Under the proposed rollout, National will add just one extra week of paid leave per year if re-elected, meaning the full 30 weeks will not arrive until 2030.
For households getting hammered by the cost of living right now, waiting four to six years for meaningful relief feels like cold comfort. We break down National's love for slow, incremental policy rollouts and ask why this was not made a priority earlier. Finance Minister Nicola Willis claimed ACT Minister Brooke van Velden did not prioritize the change in her work program this term, throwing her coalition partner straight under the bus. But the truth is National never pushed for it in the coalition agreement or put it on the agenda until now.
We dive into the history of paid parental leave in New Zealand, from National opposing it years ago to now claiming ownership of the policy, and we ask whether voters will buy the delay.
00:00:00 National extends paid parental leave with a catch
00:01:00 Why the slow rollout until 2030 hurts families
00:02:30 Nicola Willis blames ACT and Brooke van Velden
00:04:30 National's U-turn on parental leave history
00:06:30 The problem with National's delayed promises
00:08:30 Listener feedback on Stuart Nash and NZ First
Join this channel to get access to perks:
youtube.com/channel/UCSypyI8wbnZgJDYY0VCdwJQ/join
Get in touch with Duncan - duncan@rova.nz and join us on the socials.
Website: rova.nz/podcasts/duncan-garner-editor-in-chief-live
Instagram: @DuncanGarnerpodcast
TikTok: @DuncanGarnerpodcast
National has announced plans to extend paid parental leave from 26 to 30 weeks, but families are going to have to wait years to see the full benefit. Under the proposed rollout, National will add just one extra week of paid leave per year if re-elected, meaning the full 30 weeks will not arrive until 2030.
For households getting hammered by the cost of living right now, waiting four to six years for meaningful relief feels like cold comfort. We break down National's love for slow, incremental policy rollouts and ask why this was not made a priority earlier. Finance Minister Nicola Willis claimed ACT Minister Brooke van Velden did not prioritize the change in her work program this term, throwing her coalition partner straight under the bus. But the truth is National never pushed for it in the coalition agreement or put it on the agenda until now.
We dive into the history of paid parental leave in New Zealand, from National opposing it years ago to now claiming ownership of the policy, and we ask whether voters will buy the delay.
00:00:00 National extends paid parental leave with a catch
00:01:00 Why the slow rollout until 2030 hurts families
00:02:30 Nicola Willis blames ACT and Brooke van Velden
00:04:30 National's U-turn on parental leave history
00:06:30 The problem with National's delayed promises
00:08:30 Listener feedback on Stuart Nash and NZ First
Join this channel to get access to perks:
youtube.com/channel/UCSypyI8wbnZgJDYY0VCdwJQ/join
Get in touch with Duncan - duncan@rova.nz and join us on the socials.
Website: rova.nz/podcasts/duncan-garner-editor-in-chief-live
Instagram: @DuncanGarnerpodcast
TikTok: @DuncanGarnerpodcast
