Government accused of hypocrisy as company uses permit predating ban to begin operation off coast of Taranaki
Emily Bailey, a spokesperson for Climate Justice Taranaki, said: “A lot of us are just so sick of this [drilling] … It just props up this crazy economy which is driving us to extinction.” Bailey believed the rig’s arrival showed the government’s climate policy was “weak and insufficient”.
Allowing continued oil and gas development is “crazy”, said Currie, who asserted that by not restricting oil and gas drilling, the government was playing “cynical politics, and isn’t doing what is needed to uphold our collective futures”. While it has no immediate protest plans, Greenpeace would not rule out acting against the rig.
Asked about the rig’s arrival, Rilke Comer, a leader of the Students for Climate Solutions group, said, “It just feels like the government doesn’t care about safeguarding our future … On a deep, emotional level, this is really visceral and gutting.” Handford promised that activists would continue to mobilise to oppose further oil and gas extraction, but said: “It makes me sad that we have to keep doing this.”