Parliament’s Withdrawal from X "Abandons" Nearly One Million New Zealanders in an Election Year

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

20 February 2026 

Parliament’s Withdrawal from X "Abandons" Nearly One Million New Zealanders in an Election Year 

The Free Speech Union has written to Speaker of the House, Rt Hon. Gerry Brownlee after the @NZParliament account announced today that it "will no longer be posting updates on X," abandoning a platform used by nearly one million New Zealanders in an election year. 

X has approximately 933,000 users in New Zealand, representing over 22% of adults. New Zealand ranks first globally for average session time on the platform. Parliament's announcement follows Labour (last posted May 2025), the Greens (November 2024), and TVNZ, all of which have already left the platform. 

"Parliament doesn't belong to Parliamentary Service. It belongs to the public," says Free Speech Union Chief Executive Jillaine Heather. Nearly a million New Zealanders use X. You don't get to decide they do not matter because you dislike the platform or the owner. 

“This move contradicts the institution's obligation to remain accessible to the public on the platforms they actually use, particularly as New Zealand enters an election year” says Heather.  

"If the concern is illegal content on X, the answer is law enforcement, not institutional withdrawal. Illegal content exists on every major platform. If that were the standard, Parliament would have to leave Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, too. 

“The Free Speech Union’s letter to the Speaker notes that the Public Service Act 2020 requires the public service to foster "active citizenship" and "open government," and that New Zealand's Open Government Partnership commitments include using new technologies to ensure government is accessible. It asks on what basis the decision was made, and whether the same standard is being applied to Parliament's presence on other platforms. 

"When Parliament leaves X, the platform doesn't disappear. What disappears is the authoritative information. Nearly a million New Zealanders are still there, except now they're getting their Parliamentary news from rumour instead of the source. That's not protecting citizens. That's abandoning them."