Recognise Palestine and sanction Israel
Labour leader Chris Hipkins said on 9 September 2026 that a Labour-led government would move quickly to formally recognise Palestine as a state and would impose sanctions on Israel alongside countries including the United Kingdom, Canada and France.
What it does
Recognition of Palestinian statehood would be a formal act of the incoming government, which Hipkins has said Labour would work through as soon as practically possible. On sanctions, Labour has said measures should include cutting economic ties and trade, freezing assets, and travel bans on named individuals, and the party has backed a Green member's bill that would enable sanctions over Israel's occupation of the Palestinian Territories. Hipkins said New Zealand is missing in action when it comes to taking a principled stance on Gaza, and described the government's position as an embarrassment.
Where it stands
The current government has not recognised Palestine and has not joined the settlement import bans announced by Britain, France and Canada, while remaining critical of Israel's conduct. A spokesperson for the Prime Minister pointed to Foreign Minister Winston Peters' position that New Zealand does not traditionally use trade measures to pursue foreign policy objectives. ACT leader David Seymour made a similar argument, saying New Zealand is a trading nation that does not use trade bans for political purposes. The Greens' Teanau Tuiono criticised the government's stance as weak and part of a pattern of non-action, meaning Labour is being pressed from both directions on the issue.
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Key milestones
Hipkins says Labour would recognise Palestine and sanction Israel
Chris Hipkins said a Labour-led government would prioritise formal recognition of Palestine and would impose sanctions on Israel alongside like-minded countries including the United Kingdom, Canada and France. He said New Zealand is missing in action when it comes to taking a principled stance on what is happening in Gaza, and called the government's handling of the issue an embarrassment to the country. Labour has previously said sanctions should extend to cutting economic ties and trade, freezing assets and travel bans on named individuals.
Government and ACT push back; Greens say the response is too weak
A spokesperson for the Prime Minister pointed to Foreign Minister Winston Peters' position that New Zealand does not traditionally use trade measures to pursue foreign policy objectives. ACT leader David Seymour made a similar case, saying New Zealand is a trading nation that does not use trade bans for political purposes. From the other side, the Greens' Teanau Tuiono described the government's stance as weak and part of a pattern of non-action. New Zealand had earlier stopped short of joining the ban on imports from Israeli settlements announced by Britain, France and Canada, while remaining critical of Israel.
Sources
- Labour would prioritise recognition of Palestine, sanctions on Israel (RNZ) ↗
- Labour commits to very quickly recognising Palestine state if party wins election (NZ Herald) ↗
- Labour supports sanctions against Israel's illegal occupation (NZ Labour release) ↗
- NZ criticises Israel, but stops short of joining UK's import ban (RNZ) ↗