Prime Minister Christopher Luxon addresses the event alongside Kate Hayward from Xero. Photo: RNZ / Soumya Bhamidipati
The Prime Minister is selling New Zealand as a "safe haven" for UK investors in an "uncertain and volatile world", but says there's no intention of trying to bypass the United States' tariffs.
Speaking at a business networking event in London on Wednesday, Christopher Luxon said New Zealand offered abundant natural resources, credible social and democratic institutions, and good people.
"In a very uncertain and volatile world, [there is] no better place for a safe haven investment than New Zealand," he said.
"I want to know what more we can be doing to make it a very frictionless experience for investment and partnering with our New Zealand firms."
That could include changes to planning laws, the Overseas Investment Act, and tax rules for Foreign Investment Funds, Luxon said.
He told the gathering New Zealand had more to offer than meat and dairy.
"What you don't know is that we are the fourth biggest launcher of rockets into space, behind the US, Russia and China," Luxon said.
"We are also 88 percent renewable energy today, so that puts us probably in the top five in the world ... and the third thing is we have a massively exciting tech sector in our country. In fact, it's our third biggest export behind dairy and behind tourism."
'Export growth critical'
It follows a Tuesday meeting between Luxon and his UK counterpart, Sir Keir Starmer, during which both prime ministers agreed the countries' bilateral relationship had never been stronger.
"Prime Minister [Sir Keir] Starmer and I underlined our commitment to the international rules-based system. We also talked about boosting bilateral trade and investment, especially while the global economy is under such extreme pressure," Luxon said.
"Export growth will be critical to improving our economic prospects in the coming years so our businesses can create more jobs and lift incomes for Kiwis.
"Our free trade agreement provides New Zealand business with certainty of access to the high-value UK market where we have enjoyed export growth of more than 20 percent in the last year."
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Christopher Luxon at 10 Downing Street in London. Photo: AFP / Pool / Frank Augstein
There was no talk of increasing trade between the United Kingdom and New Zealand as a way to get past the United States' tariffs, Luxon told RNZ.
"I think it's an 'and', right? I mean, we all want to have a positive, constructive trading relationship with America," he said.
"New Zealand's red meat, wine, dairy are our biggest exports into the US, it's a very large market, 360 million people. If you do a good job targeting the right market and consumers they can actually afford higher prices for premium products and that's in fact what they want."
The government wanted to advance trade with as many nations as it possibly could, Luxon said.
New Zealand's Acting Trade Commissioner Paul Webster addresses the event. Photo: RNZ / Soumya Bhamidipati
Deal with Heathrow Airport
A number of commercial deals between UK and New Zealand companies worth more than $120 million were signed during Luxon's three-day visit to London.
One of these deals was the extension of a major international partnership between Heathrow Airport and New Zealand's Safe365.
The company provides safety technology to measure, monitor and improve workplace health and safety outcomes at one of the world's busiest airports.
Harry Franks, a UK investor who is also associated with the company, said he was drawn to the company's culture.
"The culture is what attracted me to the business five years ago and the culture is what sets them apart today. In a world where, in tech in particular, there can be quite a lot of hype I think Safe365 is incredibly good, and among other Kiwi businesses, at actually being focused on delivery being the most important thing they can do and I think that comes down to Kiwi culture."
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