NZ First’s Billy Brown: ‘We need normal Kiwis to step up’

NZ First’s Rotorua candidate Billy Brown has laid out his reasons for entering politics, arguing that the country needs more people with practical, private-sector experience in Parliament and a renewed focus on affordable energy, food costs, infrastructure and safer communities.

Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with independent journalist Penny Marie on People in Politics, Brown described himself as a working-class Kiwi who rose from childhood poverty to senior management in the civil construction industry.

Brown said he grew up near Christchurch in a large family where money and food were often scarce. He recalled his father cycling long distances to work and continuing to provide for seven children despite severe financial pressure.

That upbringing, he said, instilled resilience, personal responsibility and a determination to break the cycle of poverty.

Brown left school at 13 after struggling with dyslexia and entered civil construction. Over a career spanning about 30 years, he said he progressed from labouring and operating heavy machinery to supervising projects, project management and eventually general management, including responsibility for infrastructure projects worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

His decision to enter politics came much later. Brown said the birth of his grandson forced him to think beyond providing financially for his immediate family and consider what sort of New Zealand future generations would inherit.

“I’ve seen the pendulum swing to left to right, Labour to National,” Brown said, arguing that despite repeated changes of government, the country’s underlying problems had continued.

Brown said his construction background had shaped his approach to politics. In his industry, he said, budgets had to be met, decisions made and practical solutions found when projects encountered obstacles.

He contrasted that experience with what he regarded as an excessive culture of consultation, meetings and bureaucracy in government.

“The road doesn’t build itself,” Brown said, arguing that politicians should be judged by their ability to make decisions and deliver measurable results.

A major focus of his campaign is energy. Brown pointed to Rotorua’s geothermal resources and said greater development could contribute to increasing electricity generation and reducing household power costs.

He argued that families should not be forced to choose between electricity and food and backed New Zealand First proposals aimed at increasing generation and changing the structure of the electricity market.

Brown was also strongly critical of the current gentailer model, arguing that partially privatised electricity companies had become too focused on shareholder returns rather than providing affordable electricity.

For Rotorua voters, he identified power prices, food costs, energy security and community safety as among the principal issues he was hearing about.

Brown also used the interview to set out his views on Māori politics. He rejected what he described as a “grievance industry” that portrays Māori as permanent victims requiring separate systems or lower expectations.

He argued that Māori should instead be treated as equally capable of succeeding alongside every other New Zealander.

“We can achieve greatness if you treat us like any other Kiwi,” he said.

Brown was particularly critical of Te Pāti Māori and some of its political positions, which he characterised as representing a radical ideological strand rather than Māori generally. He disputed the suggestion that any political party could determine what constituted authentic Māori identity and argued that Māori held a much broader range of political and social views.

He also spoke about his own Māori heritage and his father’s experience of having te reo Māori discouraged during his upbringing. Brown said historical injustices should be acknowledged but should not determine a person’s future.

“Your starting point does not define your finish point,” he said.

Social policy was another prominent theme. Brown opposed greater state involvement in parental decisions and criticised proposals restricting social media use by children under 16, saying responsibility should primarily remain with parents.

He and Penny Marie also discussed gender policy, puberty blockers and political debate over misinformation and disinformation. Brown argued that governments should be wary of restricting competing opinions and said young people should instead be encouraged to develop critical-thinking skills.

Throughout the interview, Brown repeatedly returned to the themes of individual responsibility, family, practical experience and what he sees as the need to challenge both left-wing politics and the market-oriented economic policies pursued by successive governments.

He described himself as having come from a Labour-supporting family but said neither Labour nor National now offered the fundamental change he believed was required.

Brown said New Zealand First represented his preferred alternative because of its positions on economic intervention, national identity and social policy.

Asked about electoral strategies encouraging voters to split their electorate and party votes, Brown said voters should ultimately make their own decisions rather than become preoccupied with tactical calculations.

“Democracy sits right here in your palm of hand,” he said.

Brown made clear, however, that he wants supporters to give both their electorate and party votes to New Zealand First, arguing that a larger parliamentary presence would give the party greater influence over government policy.

His campaign, he said, was ultimately motivated by the same principle that had driven his working life: leaving his children and grandson something better than he inherited.

“Normal Kiwis need to step up instead of throwing stones from the sidelines,” Brown said.

His final message to supporters was succinct: “Let’s take back our country and join the movement.”