The Opportunities Party

The Opportunities Party (usually referred to as TOP) is a centrist political party based in New Zealand. It was founded in 2016 by economist and philanthropist Gareth Morgan. The party is based upon an idea of "evidence-based policy", with policy priorities of "Universal Basic Income (UBI)", "Affordable Housing and Rent", "Smart Small Business", and "Climate Friendly Recovery".[3]

The Opportunities Party
AbbreviationTOP
LeaderShai Navot
FounderGareth Morgan
Founded4 November 2016
IdeologyRadical centrism[1]
Environmentalism[1]
Political positionRadical centre[2]
Slogan"Don't Leave Change to Chance"
MPs in the House of Representatives
0 / 120
Website
www.top.org.nz

During the 2017 general election, TOP gained 2.4% of the vote and won no seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives.[4]

TOP contested the 2020 general election, with the party utilising similar but 'updated' "evidence-based policy".[5][6] In the election its share of the party vote declined to 1.5%.[7] The party has been led by Shai Navot since the resignation of Geoff Simmons on 3 November 2020.[8]

Policies and principles

TOP lists its policies on its website. For the 2020 election, these included:

  • A 'universal basic income' (UBI) of $13,000 per year for all adults above the age of 18 and a child UBI of $2,080 per year, with a flat tax of 33% on all income from all sources for all entities, to simplify & modernise the tax system[9] for an unstable future of work with the advance of Automation and Artificial Intelligence.[10]
  • A minimum tax on the equity of property, called a 'property tax'.[11] This would bring property into the tax system in a way that stabilises the property market, comparable to other models such as Japan's property tax,[12] and Germany's property taxes (Grundsteuer).[13] TOP proposes property tax could be used to reduce the burden of income tax.[11]
  • Introduce a better urban development strategy with a new 'Urban Development Act' to supplant the RMA within urban boundaries. This would increase the supply of new housing in the marketplace, provide new forms of social housing and set out a 30-year plan to create "healthy, resilient cities". Additionally, this would include the creation of regional urban design panels responsible for reviewing major developments and a further redirection of revenue to local government to maintain public assets and infrastructure, and incentivise councils to enable new housing developments.[14]
  • Eliminating fossil-fuel use in New Zealand by 2050.[15]
  • Support the referendum to legalise cannabis, but improve the legislation. Generally, regulate all drugs according to harm.[16]
  • Ceasing intensification of land use until impacts on rivers and lakes is offset, and adopting a policy that polluters pay.[17]
  • Tightening immigration laws and shifting the focus to attracting highly skilled immigrants, requiring immigrants to demonstrate they can help improve the living standards of all New Zealanders.[18]
  • Providing free full-time early-childhood education. Reducing testing in schools so teachers spend less time marking tests and more time teaching.[19]
  • Establishing a written constitution and an upper house of parliament.[20]
  • Reduce the prison population from 210 per 100,000 to 114 per 100,000 by 2027. To achieve this the party would repeal the Bail Amendment Act of 2013 among other actions.[21]

History

Foundation
Economist Gareth Morgan founded TOP in 2016.

The Opportunities Party was founded by economist and philanthropist Gareth Morgan in November 2016. Gareth Morgan launched the party on 4 November outside Parliament House in Wellington. On 10 January 2017 the party announced that it had 2,000 members and was applying for registration. It also announced that it was considering standing electorate candidates.[22][23] The Electoral Commission posted notice of the registration application on 21 January.[24]

The party announced that then party chief of staff Geoff Simmons would contest the Mount Albert by-election on 25 February 2017.[25] During the by-election the party was criticised by David Seymour for offering free rides for Mount Albert voters, which he asserted breached the Electoral Act.[26] However, the Electoral Commission cleared TOP of any wrongdoing.[27] Simmons received 623 votes (4.56% of the total vote), placing him third.[28]

2017 general election

The party was registered by the Electoral Commission on 6 March 2017.[29] On 24 May 2017, Gareth Morgan announced the party's first four electoral and list candidates for the general election on 23 September 2017,[30] and announced further candidates in the following months[31][32][33] including former Green Party candidate Teresa Moore who joined Geoff Simmons as co-deputy leader.[34][35] TOP's final list had 26 party list candidates of which 21 were also contesting electorates.[36]

TOP took TVNZ to court after being excluded from its televised election debates, but lost the case.[37] Leader Gareth Morgan faced controversy during the campaign for referring to Labour leader Jacinda Ardern as "lipstick on a pig", suggesting that the new leader had style but not substance.[38] Morgan also faced backlash when he criticised the public for being sad over the death of Jacinda Ardern's cat. This backlash included an email from TOP candidate Jenny Condie, who said, "“It is not merely Gareth’s comments themselves – these are a reflection of the culture that exists within the party. There is a mismatch between our policies and our culture: between what we say we want to accomplish and how we actually behave." In response, Morgan told Condie to resign from the party.[39]

At the 2017 general election, TOP gained 2.4% of the vote and won no seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives.[4] Party leader Gareth Morgan vowed to continue fighting for a "fairer New Zealand" and maintained that TOP was not a failure since it was the fifth most popular party.[40]

Post election developments

In December 2017, three months after the election, Morgan resigned as leader and the party's deputy leader Geoff Simmons and two candidates also stepped down from their roles. Morgan said the party would contest the 2020 election but he would not lead it.[41]

In the week that followed the resignations, candidates Jessica Hammond Doube and Jenny Condie announced the launching of a splinter group from TOP with the placeholder name "Next Big Thing". Both candidates attributed their low list rankings to their having raised questions over Morgan's controversial remarks during the election campaign.[42] Condie would become a councillor for Wellington in 2019,[43] while Jessica Hammond would return to TOP for the 2020 election,[44] after a culture shift within the party during its rebuilding phase.

On 9 July 2018, Morgan announced that the Board of The Opportunities Party had decided to cancel the party's registration since the party lacked the time and resources to contest the 2020 general election. In late July, Morgan and the party's board announced that he would reconsider his decision to cancel the party's registration after receiving expressions of interest from people sympathetic to the party's goals. Morgan also indicated in a Facebook post that he was willing to fund candidates and leaders sympathetic to the goals of The Opportunities Party.

In August 2018, The Opportunities Party appointed a new board and Geoff Simmons was appointed interim leader. The new team embarked on a "Listening Tour" across the country to gauge supporter reaction and future interest.[45]

In December 2018, an internal leadership election was run by blockchain election company Horizon State. The candidates for leader were Geoff Simmons, Donna Pokere-Phillips, Amy Stevens, Anthony Singh, and Jessica Hammond-Doube. An election was also held for the member-representative to the Board. On 8 December 2018, the board announced that Geoff Simmons had been elected[46] and that Donna Pokere-Phillips had won the race for Member Representative.[47]

2020 general election
See also: 2020 New Zealand general election
Geoff Simmons led the party into the 2020 election

After gathering enough support to restart the party and continuing to register with the Electorate Commission, a rebrand and relaunch was held in October 2019. In the brand launch speech, leader Geoff Simmons called for a universal basic income and advances in environment and housing, and to "break the Labour / National duopoly".[48]

TOP has nominated candidates in multiple electorates.[49] The Ōhāriu electorate is a particular focus: TOP's Ōhāriu candidate Jessica Hammond said that TOP intends to pour resources into that campaign, as it is the only seat that the party could win.[50] Simmons himself will contest Rongotai.[51] The party received a broadcasting allocation of $145,101 for the 2020 election.[52]

The party won 43,449 party votes in the election, or 1.5% of the total.[7] During the party's first AGM held on 3 November 2020 after the preliminary results had been released, Geoff Simmons resigned as leader.[8]

The party initially used a variant of the Wā kāinga / Home flag as its logo. In a November 2016 blog post, Gareth Morgan noted it had won the Morgan Foundation's flag competition in 2016 and that it symbolised "the transition we currently have underway in Aotearoa".[53] The creators of the Red Peak flag criticised the party for using a logo similar to their flag without discussing it with them.[54] TOP attempted to register this as their logo in January 2017 at the same time as the party;[24] the party was registered in March 2017 but approval of the logo was deferred due to a by-election in March.[55]

The party then changed to a logo consisting of the letters, T, O, and P in black, red, and dark blue respectively. The party applied to register this with the Electoral Commission in April 2017[56] and it was approved in May 2017.[57] In October 2019, the party updated its website, including a new logo. This logo shows a T, O, P, and full stop; the T and P are in black and the O and full stop are the same colour, though that colour varies from use to use. The logo can appear with a slogan "Vote Different", in a typewriter font.[58] This new logo was registered in February 2020.[59] In the run up to the 2020 New Zealand general election, the party changed the slogan beneath its logo from "Vote Different" to "A Vote For Change".[60]

  • A variant on Wā kāinga
  • Second logo used for the 2017 election
  • 2020 election campaign logo

Electoral results
General election Candidates nominated Seats won Votes Vote share %
Electorate List
2017 21 26
0 / 120
 63,261 2.4%
2020 TBD 21
0 / 120
 43,449 1.5%

Office-holders

Leader
Name Assumed Office Left Office Notes
1 Gareth Morgan 4 November 2016 14 December 2017 Party founder
2 Geoff Simmons 18 August 2018 3 November 2020
3 Shai Navot 3 November 2020 Present Temporary position while TOP searches for a new leader to replace Simmons

Deputy leader
Office Holder Assumed Office Left Office Notes
1 Geoff Simmons 24 May 2017 14 December 2017
2 Teresa Moore 28 August 2017 9 July 2018 Appointed co-deputy leader along with Simmons
3 Shai Navot 30 April 2020 3 November 2020 Announced by the party on Twitter.[61] Became leader on 3 Nov 2020.

References
  1. "Vision". TOP. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  2. Mt Albert by-election to test how palatable The Opportunities Party's 'radical centrism' will be in the general election; Geoff Simmons explains why 'it's time for something fresh'. Interest.co.nz. Author - Jenée Tibshraeny. Published 10 February 2017. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  3. "TOP Policy". TOP. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  4. "2017 General Election - Official Result". New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
  5. "TOP Announces First Candidates for 2020 Election". The Opportunities Party. 24 February 2020. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  6. "Parties | Vote NZ". vote.nz. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  7. "2020 General Election and Referendums - Official Result". Electoral Commission. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  8. "The Opportunities Party leader Geoff Simmons resigns, interim leader named". Stuff. 3 November 2020. Archived from the original on 3 November 2020.
  9. "Universal Basic Income (UBI)". TOP. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  10. Press, Gil. "Is AI Going To Be A Jobs Killer? New Reports About The Future Of Work". Forbes. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  11. "Property Tax Policy". TOP. 11 September 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  12. "Real estate-related taxes and fees in Japan". www.i-interface.com. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  13. Guide, Global Property (5 June 2020). "Taxes on Foreigners' Real Estate Rental Income in Germany". Global Property Guide. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  14. "Building Aotearoa New Zealand". Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  15. "Climate Change Action". TOP. 9 March 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  16. "The Real Deal Cannabis Reform". TOP. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  17. "Environmental Policy". TOP. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  18. "Smarter Immigration". TOP. 3 February 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  19. "TOP5 - Education Reform". TOP. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  20. "Democracy Reset". TOP. 7 February 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  21. "Positive Justice". TOP. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  22. "The Opportunities Party to Register". The Opportunities Party. 10 January 2017. Archived from the original on 6 April 2017. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
  23. Sachdeva, Sam (10 January 2017). "Gareth Morgan registers political party to prepare for potential early election". Stuff. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  24. "Registration of The Opportunities Party (TOP) and Logo". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
  25. Sachdeva, Sam (1 February 2017). "Gareth Morgan's party to take on Jacinda Ardern in Mt Albert by-election". Stuff. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  26. "ACT Party says TOP's offer of free bus rides to voters breaks the law". Stuff. 17 February 2017. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  27. "The Opportunities Party cleared of 'treating' after giving free rides to voters". Stuff. 21 February 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
  28. "Mt Albert - Official Result". www.electionresults.govt.nz. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  29. http://www.elections.org.nz/news-media/registration-opportunities-party-top
  30. "Gareth Morgan Announces The Opportunities Party (TOP) First Set of Candidates". TOP. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  31. "Gareth Morgan Announces The Opportunities Party (TOP) Second Set of Candidates". TOP. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  32. Jones, Nicholas (15 June 2017). "Mika to stand in Auckland Central for Gareth Morgan's new party". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
  33. "Mika Haka". TOP. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  34. "Teresa Moore". TOP. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  35. "Gareth Morgan adds new deputy co-leader of TOP, releases party list". Stuff. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  36. "Party and candidate lists for 2017 Election". New Zealand Electoral Commission. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
  37. Manch, Thomas (9 September 2020). "Election 2020: TOP furious as TVNZ includes Advance NZ, Māori Party in debate". Stuff. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  38. "Storm erupts over Gareth Morgan's 'lipstick on a pig' tweet". NZ Herald. 20 August 2017. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  39. Rowe, Don (11 November 2017). "'Another day where it feels embarrassing to be associated with TOP': the email which enraged Morgan". The Spinoff. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  40. Swinnen, Lucy (24 September 2017). "Party 'for a fairer New Zealand' falls flat, as Gareth Morgan's TOP falls far short of 5 per cent". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
  41. "TOP loses leader Gareth Morgan and three other candidates in matter of hours". Stuff.co.nz. 14 December 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
  42. Cooke, Henry (19 December 2017). "Ex-TOP candidates start new political action group". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  43. "Councillor Jenny Condie". Wellington City Council. 18 February 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  44. Simmons, Geoff (23 January 2020). "First Candidate Announcement for 2020". TOP. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
  45. 21 November 2018, The Opportunities Party. "The Listening Tour: Workshop Results". TOP. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  46. "Parliamentary Leader Results" (PDF). d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  47. "Member Representative Results" (PDF). d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  48. "TOP Brand Launch". The Opportunities Party. 8 October 2019. Archived from the original on 8 October 2020. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  49. "TOP Candidates". The Opportunities Party. 20 March 2020. Retrieved 19 April 2020.
  50. Manch, Thomas (13 June 2020). "The battle for Ōhāriu: TOP is back, and it's hoping to spoil a fight between Labour and National". Stuff. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  51. MacManus, Joel (9 July 2020). "TOP leader Geoff Simmons announces run in Rongotai". Stuff. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  52. "2020 Broadcasting Allocation Decision Released". Electoral Commission. 29 May 2020. Archived from the original on 13 September 2020. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  53. Morgan, Gareth (6 November 2016). "Why I chose this for The Opportunities Party logo and what it means". TOP. Archived from the original on 13 April 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  54. Sachdeva, Sam (4 November 2016). "Explainer: Why is Gareth Morgan entering politics, and what are his chances?". Stuff. Retrieved 11 January 2017.
  55. "Registration of The Opportunities Party (TOP)". elections.nz. 6 March 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  56. "Application to register political party logo". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  57. "Registration of party logo for The Opportunities Party (TOP)". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
  58. "TOP". TOP. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
  59. "Register of political parties". elections.nz. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
  60. "TOP - The Opportunities Party". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  61. Opportunities Party (30 April 2020). ""Congratulations to Shai Navot..."". Twitter @top_nz. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
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