Labour didn't show up to the Fieldays in 2026

MPs from National, ACT and NZ First shared photos and video of an empty grass plot at Fieldays 2026, claiming it had been reserved for Labour. This was a lie.

National's Chris Bishop posted a video from the spot that was viewed nearly 200,000 times on Instagram, while ACT leader David Seymour wrote "First we couldn't find their policies, now we can't find them at all."

Labour leader Chris Hipkins said the party never booked a stall and made the decision about a year earlier, having had one the previous year but finding better engagement going "out and about" talking directly to attendees instead, a claim backed by Labour MPs' and candidates' own social media photos from the event. Fieldays' maps, exhibitor lists, and site information, all show that there was never a space set aside for Labour.