Teacher puts hand up for Labour

Pukekohe teacher and Buckland resident Matt Brachi will represent Labour as a candidate for the Port Waikato electorate.

Brachi has taught in primary, intermediate, and secondary schools as a maths, STEM, and English teacher. He currently teaches at Pukekohe High School.

“This is my first foray into national politics. I’ve been involved as a longstanding teacher union member. However, as teachers, we’re politically neutral in the work that we do as public servants. This is me stepping out from that and saying, as the Labour candidate, what I believe in and where I believe we could be doing better,” he told the Franklin Times.

Brachi says one of the major concerns facing all Kiwis is the cost of living.

“As a teacher, parent, and community member, I have experienced first-hand the pressures faced by hard-working Kiwis and their families. I am passionate about getting New Zealand back to a place of dignity, where it is a realistic goal to own your own home, find a good job, access affordable healthcare, and be able to enjoy a great quality of life.”

“For Port Waikato itself, we also have the challenge of not only actually getting access to services but also being a very geographically spread area. In terms of actually accessing medical treatment, some services are not even available in the area, and we’ve got people being told, sorry, you’ve got to go to Botany, Remuera, or Manukau to be able to access these medical treatments that you need.”

Brachi says there is also a huge amount of growth in the area, bringing additional challenges.

“A lot of the infrastructure falls under the council, but we need to make sure that the government’s working with the councils to make sure that they are actually putting the infrastructure in and being funded to provide an appropriate level of infrastructure.”

He says his campaign will be based on listening and representing local concerns in a practical, inclusive, and respectful way.

“I hope to encourage participation among younger and first-time voters, and build trust with undecided voters through steady, credible representation.”