New Zealand Reverses Jacinda Ardern’s ‘Ill-Fated’ Oil and Gas Ban
31st July 2025
New Zealand will reverse its ban on new oil and gas exploration that was put in place under Jacinda Ardern, the former Left-wing prime minister.
The country’s government voted on Thursday to overturn the ban, with Shane Jones, the resources minister, arguing that climate change was “largely moral hysteria”.
He said overturning the ban would stoke investment in petroleum exploration and help ease winter energy supply issues.
Mr Jones said: in a statement: “The ill-fated exploration ban in 2018 has exacerbated shortages in our domestic gas supply by obliterating new investment.”
Ms Ardern – who led the country between 2017 and 2023 – banned new offshore exploration in 2018, citing New Zealand’s “clean, green and sustainable future”.