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Hipkins Pledges 10% Student Debt Cut as New Zealand Election Campaigns Launch

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Courtroom-sketch editorial illustration of an archival October 2024 view of New Zealand's Parliament in Wellington, the round Beehive executive wing beside the columned stone Parliament House, cabbage trees along the forecourt; institutional context for the 2026 election, not the September 27 Auckland campaign launches, rendered in warm ochre and slate-blue pastel strokes.

New Zealand's Labour and National parties formally launched their campaigns in Auckland on Sunday, six weeks before the November 7 general election. Labour leader Chris Hipkins pledged to cut 10% of eligible student loan debt from April 1, 2027, wiping balances of NZ$2,000 or less entirely, at a cost of NZ$583.4 million over four years. "If you have a student loan and stay in New Zealand, under Labour you will owe less," he said. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon unveiled National's 10-point pledge card, including no new taxes and returning the books to surplus, and told supporters, "You can't afford Chris Hipkins."

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