Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters says NZ First shared the Labour Party's "aspiration" to increase the refugee quota, as Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced it will be raised to 1500 today.
The NZ First Party leader's position was in stark contrast to comments made at the start of the month at the Pacific Islands Forum in Nauru.
"We never made a commitment to double the refugee quota," Mr Peters told media at the time.
The Deputy PM went on to argue there were other priorities for the Government.
"We've got 50,000 people who are homeless back home, and I can show you parts of the Hokianga and elsewhere, parts of Northland, with people living in degradation.
"We have to fix their lives up as well before we start taking on new obligations of the level that some people would like."
However, while standing next to Ms Ardern during the announcement today he took a much softer line on the refugee issue.
"This is about people not about politics and controversy, the fact is it was put to me in Nauru that the 1500 figure was already there, which it wasn't.
"The Labour Party policy I knew was an aspiration towards that, so was New Zealand First's an aspiration towards that, and I knew the Greens had a higher target," Mr Peters said.
"All I did was put out the plain facts and to say that it was a work in progress and I'm not surprised with the speed at which the progress has taken place.
"This was always on the cards that we'd get it done when we had all the background work done on refugee centres and a host of other things," he continued.
PM Jacinda Ardern made the announcement today.
New Zealand's refugee quota was previously 1000, after being increased by the National-led Government from 750 in 2016.
The new quota will take effect from July 2020.
Major points
- There will be six new settlement locations, on top of re-establishing Christchurch as a settlement location.
- Expanding the public housing supply for 150 extra refugee families is expected to cost $32.5 million over three years.
- Budget 2018 included money to build new accommodation blocks at the Mangere Refugee Resettlement Centre
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