Qiulae 'Q' Wong believes that the “role of government is to look at the horizon and stand for that.” She’s sick of the divisive, “pendulum politics” that we see in New Zealand today, with governments undoing policy changes with every switch in power. Founded in 2016, The Opportunity Party is ready to step in.
Following her time working in London and helping businesses operate in a more sustainable way, Q was left thinking about how to improve the “whole system”, but kept bumping up against the need for the government to “step in”. It was against this realisation that when The Opportunity Party put out their leadership call late last year, Q reckoned she’d “give it a crack.” And now, four months later – here she is.
Dave Bainbridge-Zafar, the Dunedin Electorate MP, first met Q when he asked her a question and she gave him the best answer he’s ever had from a politician: “‘I don’t know”. According to Dave, Q didn’t try to spin it, or answer a different question that she did know the answer to. “I thought that was really refreshing.” While neither Q or Dave never saw themselves becoming an MP, they both think that Aotearoa can do better – and think they can help make this happen.
As a smaller party, Critic Te Ārohi was keen to have a yarn with Q and Dave to figure out what’s what for The Opportunity Party. First on the agenda was figuring out where they sit on the political spectrum. According to Q, the Party rejects the binary labels of left and right wing. However, she still hears a lot about a misconception that they’re right wing. “Anyone [that] actually looked at our policies [would] see that wasn’t us”. Q also noted that the concept of left and right wing is an "archaic framework” and “an unhelpful construct” that doesn’t explain modern issues, or focus on what's actually going to work for New Zealand. In fact, it originated from seating arrangements during the French Revolution – it might be time to move on!
The issue with the political ideological binary is that it creates division. That divisive narrative seems to be extra prevalent across the globe right now, and Q puts it down to a “large majority” of people in the middle who just “tune out” of politics and don’t engage. That leaves noisy people on the fringes “dominating the political conversation.” This division is a key aspect of the system The Opportunity Party hopes to change by refusing that political binary. “Taking that centrist stance and not picking a side is difficult. But it means we can hold each side to account in different ways.”
Q understands the disengagement young people might currently feel from politics, even just from turning on the news. However, she felt that the Opportunity Party was the “only party focusing on the long term” and tackling big issues which are going to shape the next 50 years – especially for young people. She hopes to make New Zealand a country that students want to stay in, live in, and work in. While she had “an amazing time overseas”, she’s always wanted New Zealand to be “a nation with a strong pull.”
In the 2023 general election, The Opportunity Party came in at just 2.2% of votes. Critic asked why they reckon that is. Q admits that the number one criticism their party faces is that voting for them is a “waste”. However, she reckons that for every person she met during the general election that voted for the Party, she met a further “three or four people who wanted to vote for us but didn’t. If all of those people had voted we’d be in Parliament by now.” According to Q, in terms of the concept of “wasting” a vote, those that didn’t end up voting for The Opportunity Party ended up “really disappointed” with the current Government. They “felt like they had wasted a vote anyway."
At the time of writing, the Party has a record high number of 26 electoral candidates running. The Opportunity Party have their sights squarely set on the 5% threshold party vote as their golden ticket into Parliament. With a “really clear idea of who our voter base is”, their key strategy now is straightforward: “[Have] thousands of these face to face conversations.” Way to make a student mag feel special. However, Q did add that if the party starts “getting desperate” and not polling high enough, that she’ll “consider changing my name to Chris.”
Dave brought up “rage fatigue” as another point for the party, recognising that there are so many things in the world to be angry about and “grab a sign and protest against” right now. But with that anger comes a sense of tiredness. “That’s what I like about Opportunity, [we’re] much more pragmatic.” And what does that pragmatism look like, both for Dunners and broader Aotearoa?
Dave’s big priorities for Ōtepoti are to implement free public transport, and improve the quality and standard of housing. “No way the people who built some of these houses around Dunedin thought they’d still be standing a hundred odd years later,” he explains. Q talked a bit about wanting Citizens assemblies implemented nationally. Citizens' assemblies are deliberative, democratic processes that bring together a randomly selected, demographically representative group of citizens. This uplifts the voices of everyday people in complex policy decision making, which Q believes results in a “much more holistic conversation” regarding national policy issues.
When asked about opinions on artificial intelligence, Q linked rising AI use resulting job changes to a need for a citizen’s income. With the current job market and erasure of entry level roles, this policy would provide nationwide security to individuals, ensuring every Kiwi can afford the basics to live well and contribute to society. Under this model, most adults would receive a regular payment roughly in line with the current Jobseeker benefit. Q also noted that while it's important for students to be upskilling where they can in the face of technological advancement as well as practicing critical thinking and creativity, there have been worries about tech taking over before. “It’s never fully eventuated in the ways that people feared [...] To some degree, I think that’ll be the case with AI.”
The Opportunity Party also hopes to implement a land value tax. Essentially, with only land being taxed (not buildings) this would hopefully incentivise productive land use, and prevent land banking. Productive use means more efficient housing per section of land, and increasing housing supply to meet demand. Q believes that the housing crisis in general is “not being taken seriously enough at a national policy level”, and it’s “these kinds of things always hurt the more vulnerable first, such as students.”
When asked why students should vote for The Opportunity Party, Q had a straightforward answer. If you’re keen on “building the kind of New Zealand that [students] would actually want to live in,” you should lend them your vote. From Dave, he believes they’re about creating opportunities. “It’s the name of the party, right?” If you’re keen to learn more, the Party has a fantastic website where you can engage in policy discussion, join local clusters, and help organise events. It’s like The Opportunity Party’s own little social media.
Other than voting for The Opportunity Party, the easiest thing for tauira to do is to spread the word. “Have conversations with your friends, and help dispel some of those impressions that people have about the Party.”
