Since joining the Greens in 1992, Celia Wade-Brown has stood in both local and national elections, succeeding in becoming the mayor of Wellington from 2010 until 2016.
On the subject of tackling crime, Wade-Brown is keen to stress the importance of addressing its causes: “Lack of a caring home, lack of education, no diagnosis of mental illness, no rehabilitation of drug and alcohol addictions”.
Youth crime and ram-raiding can be overplayed in the political arena, Wade-Brown says, and there are other crimes that should be a focus of the next government,
“Let’s not forget white collar crime – tax evasion scams and outright fraud. And we need to invest in cyber security, and people understanding how to keep themselves safe on the internet.”
Wade-Brown is also promoting a bold way to tackle financial inequality through a guaranteed minimum income of at least $385 a week.
“It’ll make a considerable difference if you’re working or if for some reason you’re not able to work,” she says.
“It’s not fair the children of nurses, early childhood carers, cleaners, and farm workers should have less of a good start in life than the children of bankers and company owners.”
With a huge farming community in Wairarapa, Wade-Brown also stresses that many farmers are already supporting the Green’s sustainable policies.
“They really want the clean rivers and the healthy climate that everybody else does,” she says.
“Many farmers are already planting wetlands, reducing their fertilizer use, and very aware of the amount of emissions from their farms.”
