The ACT Party has had another bump in the polls, with tonight’s 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton poll giving the party its best result in 17 years, and up from its poll result last week.
The party is now polling at eight per cent, a one per cent increase from last week’s poll. This means it could be looking at a 10-strong caucus after the election.
ACT Party leader David Seymour said his party would continue to rise as “the gap between the left and the right tighten”.
“I think it’s game on … we’re [ACT are] consistent and constructive in the way we approach politics.”
Seymour said if he ended up in Government, he would bring back charter schools, after the latest Government abolished them.
He said it was "to give, frankly, poor brown kids who never get a chance."
He also wants to get rid of the Māori seats.
“They’re going out of fashion anyway,” Seymour said.
ACT also wants to reduce Parliament by 20 MPs and electronically measure the spending of beneficiaries.
Seymour said it wasn’t “Nanny State” policy “if the nanny’s giving you the money”.
The latest 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton poll suggests its best support in 17 years.
He is also promising permanent tax cuts, pledging to move middle-income thresholds from 30 to 17.5 per cent.
It would deliver similar savings for middle-income earners to National’s election promise to slash taxes for 16 months.
“I think having a temporary tax cut is a little bit disingenuous quite frankly,” Seymour said of National's policy.
But, political commentator Thomas Pryor said the rise in ACT’s support should get National worried.
“If I was Judith Collins I’d be a little bit worried about the rise of ACT and think, well, perhaps we need to point out some of the issues with ACT.”
He said with the End of Life Choice Bill and the debate about gun rights in this Parliamentary term, Seymour’s profile had got a boost.
1 NEWS political editor Jessica Mutch McKay has the latest results, less than three weeks out from election day.
“There is just more right-wing voters looking for a home. They’re not as aligned to National or New Zealand First.”
Pryor said Seymour’s ACT was a blend of Rodney Hide’s - which went hard on law and order - and Richard Prebble’s, who positioned the party as classic liberals.
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