The Greens in Government have won a significant change to KiwiSaver funds that will bring an end to investments in fossil fuels, Green Party Co-leader James Shaw said today.

“People setting aside money for the future want to know their savings are being put to good use, helping to create a better future for their kids and grandkids,” James Shaw said.

The changes announced today mean that investments in fossil fuel production will be excluded from future KiwiSaver funds that are default providers.

“Rules set down by previous governments allowed people’s hard-earned money to be used to support the fossil fuels companies that are the leading cause of the climate crisis. Moving money away from dirty energy is important if we are to create cleaner, greener and safer communities in every part of the country.

“But this Government has put people and planet first by ensuring default KiwiSaver funds will soon be fossil fuel free. We are making KiwiSaver better for our future, better for our kids and better for our climate. This is another example of the Greens in Government at work.

“It is in these sorts of changes the Greens have won that you will find our better future. But we know this is just the start.

“For us to create the clean, green communities most New Zealanders want, we need to go further and faster. We need more bold actions like the one we announced today, and we need others that are holding large purse strings to follow KiwiSaver and end their investments in fossil fuels,” James Shaw said.

ENDS

Notes

Fossil fuels will be excluded from all future KiwiSaver default funds. Investments in illegal weapons will also be excluded.

There are currently nine default fund providers, and their terms expire in mid-2021. The new rules will apply to the default funds that are in place from mid-2021. The process to appoint new default KiwiSaver providers starts later this year.

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