India trade a New Zealand priority to reduce China syndrome

NZ PM Chris Hipkins and opposition leader Christopher Luxon say they’ll increase trade with India as the country tries to lessen its dependence on China.

Chris Hipkins and Christopher Luxon clashed on trade and race in the last leaders’ debate. Picture: Newshub

Christopher Luxon, New Zealand’s likely next prime minister after Saturday’s election, says he has Anthony Albanese’s phone number but hasn’t yet been in touch.

At the third and last leaders’ debate before the October 14 poll, Mr Luxon and Prime Minister Chris Hipkins were asked whether they regularly texted Mr Albanese.

Mr Hipkins said he had been in contact this week over the conflict in Israel while Mr Luxon said if he was to make contact, it would be by a phone call rather than a text.

Both leaders agreed trade with India would be a priority of the next government’s first term, as the country seeks to lessen its dependence on China for trade.

Mr Luxon committed to a free-trade agreement with India in his first term, while Mr Hipkins said he would lead a trade delegation within the first 100 days.

New Zealand is dependent on China for nearly one-third of its trade, a dependence that has seen Wellington soft-pedalling on China’s aggressive reach into the Indo-Pacific, to the irritation of defence allies Australia and the US.

Mr Luxon, who on current polling is expected to win on Saturday, noted that both Australia and the UK had FTA deals with India and New Zealand was lagging. However, India has been unenthusiastic about an FTA, leading Mr Hipkins to accuse Mr Luxon of making promises he couldn’t keep.

“While I was in the UK getting an FTA into force, Christopher Luxon was saying New Zealand is wet, whiny and miserable,” he said, referring to a comment Mr Luxon made to farmers earlier this year.

Both leaders also committed to a visit to China within the first term of their government.

Asked about divisions in the country, particularly over identity politics, the two agreed New Zealand had become polarised.

Mr Luxon described New Zealand as riven with identity politics.

“This country is more divided than it has even been,” he said. “We have to bring New Zealand together.”

Both his likely coalition partners Winston Peters, leader of New Zealand First, and David Seymour, leader of the libertarian ACT party, have been accused of racism in part because of their opposition to shared governance with Maori tribes, and to the spread of the Maori language introduced under Labour.

Mr Hipkins has accused Mr Luxon of being willing to “work with racists” because of his admission he would invite Mr Peters into a coalition government.

The radical Te Pati Maori, which Labour would have to invite into a coalition, has also been accused of pushing a racist agenda.