They promised to end race-based governance; now they’re engineering it into science law. Will you chip in to fight back?

New Zealanders were promised an end to race-based decision-making. Yet the new Gene Technology Bill writes it straight into law. It creates Māori-only advisory committees and embeds identity politics into scientific regulation. It is a new grift through which one race can make a large amount of money while interfering in commerce and halting projects that benefit others. 

It should be fairly obvious, but this is why we oppose this bill:

• Race trumps evidence: Scientific applications must now be assessed not only on their merits but also on ancestry-based claims. This undermines innovation and slows progress.
• Unequal influence: Māori individuals and entities gain legal standing to block applications. Ordinary New Zealanders and businesses are left without recourse or appeal rights. 
• Permanent bureaucracy: Advisory committees, consultations, and mitigation agreements divert public resources into a system that rewards consultants and insiders, not farmers, scientists, or consumers.
• Legal uncertainty: “Kaitiaki relationships” are subjective. There are no clear appeal rights, leaving applicants exposed to arbitrary vetoes.

Science should be guided by evidence, not ethnicity. Regulation should apply to everyone equally. This Bill rewards consultants, not innovators, and divides Kiwis instead of uniting us.