Foreign Minister Winston Peters has ignited a political storm after suggesting New Zealand should reassess its membership in the World Health Organization (WHO), a move one former foreign minister has labelled “incredibly stupid.” Peters’ comments followed the United States’ withdrawal from the organisation, a decision that has sent shockwaves through global health governance.
Posting on X, Peters questioned whether New Zealand taxpayers were getting value for money, accusing the WHO of being run by “unelected globalist bureaucrats” who lacked accountability. He later told Morning Report the organisation had become “bloated” and strayed from its original mandate. New Zealand contributes several million dollars annually to the WHO, a cost Peters believes warrants closer scrutiny. “We need a serious conversation about accountability to the New Zealand people,” he said.
The US withdrawal, justified by Washington as a response to alleged failures during the Covid‑19 pandemic, was sharply criticised by WHO director‑general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who warned the move made “the US and the world less safe.”
Former foreign minister Phil Goff, however, dismissed Peters’ stance as political posturing, accusing him of trying to “become a mini‑Trump.” Goff argued the WHO’s track record—including the eradication of smallpox and near‑eradication of polio—demonstrated its global importance. New Zealand’s annual contribution of around $2.25 million, he said, was modest but vital for supporting vulnerable nations and coordinating pandemic responses.
Goff, who was removed as high commissioner to the UK by Peters last year, also criticised Prime Minister Christopher Luxon for not immediately rejecting US President Donald Trump’s invitation to join a proposed “Board of Peace” overseeing Gaza’s reconstruction. He called the government “gutless” for failing to challenge Trump’s rhetoric, including comments diminishing the role of New Zealand and NATO soldiers in Afghanistan.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins echoed the criticism, calling the idea of Luxon sitting alongside Vladimir Putin on a Trump‑led peace council “embarrassing.”
Luxon, however, maintained that while global institutions like the WHO and UN need modernisation, New Zealand’s membership is not in doubt. “Our challenge is to make them function better,” he said, emphasising the WHO’s crucial role in strengthening health systems across the Pacific.
