March 06, 2019
Schoolkids climate strike "pretentious"
Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters says rangatahi should stay at school and not strike to protest climate change inaction.
Labour and Green MPs are supporting the international day of action on March 15, but the New Zealand First leader says truanting isn't the answer.
Having a great cause isn't an excuse.
"The young people's view of the climate is no more important than an old women's view of the climate or a middle aged person's view of the climate. It's all an issue for people who are adults to decide on, and when we have this, you may as well say 'why don't we have kindergarten children out protesting, why don't we have primmers and first, second, third year kids out there protesting?' It's just ridiculous and it's pretentious in the extreme," Mr Peters says.
His preferred form of protest is political organising to achieve real change.
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