Clayton Mitchell New Zealand First MP

The weekend's New Zealand First AGM and 25-year celebration was a huge success, with delegates and party supporters from all over New Zealand travelling to Tauranga for the sold-out event.

It was a weekend of achievements for the party. First and foremost, we adopted a new constitution. Voting delegates also elected new board members and a new president, who has already hit the ground running. We are excited about the changes and are looking forward to what is coming up.

The remit sessions are always a good way for our members to debate remits from all over the country. Tauranga put forward several. We proposed that New Zealand First tightens regulation of Retirement Villages, that it seeks to provide incentives to holiday work visa holders into those areas experiencing employee shortages and that it introduces the Respecting New Zealand Values Bill for migrants and refugees. All remits were debated and were carried.

Among our keynote speakers was former WBO Heavy Weight Champion Joseph Parker, who inspired everyone with his tale of transition from underdog to world champion. He also spoke of his goal to retake his title in the face of cynics who say it can't be done.

This resonates with New Zealand First, which has at times fought against the odds, achieving huge political success when naysayers said it couldn't be done.

The weekend wrapped up with Winston Peters delivering his leader's address to an enthusiastic audience.

I would like to thank Tauranga for being a great host for our convention, and our New Zealand First Tauranga electorate committee who put endless hours into making the event a success.