NZ Under which party did the number of nurses grow faster?
About 20,000 more nurses were licensed under Luxon's National government in its first term, compared with about 11,000 under Ardern and Hipkins' Labour government.
Updated
Labour under Ardern and Hipkins: 53,922 (2016) to 65,419 (2022), up 21.3% (3.3% per year). National under Luxon: 65,419 (2022) to 85,462 (2025), up 30.6% (9.3% per year).
Show the figures
| Period | Nurses licensed to practise (number) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 85,462 |
| 2024 | 78,703 |
| 2023 | 69,621 |
| 2022 | 65,419 |
| 2021 | 62,342 |
| 2020 | 59,866 |
| 2019 | 57,833 |
| 2018 | 56,355 |
| 2017 | 55,289 |
| 2016 | 53,922 |
| 2015 | 52,729 |
| 2014 | 51,385 |
| 2013 | 50,060 |
| 2012 | 49,347 |
| 2011 | 48,527 |
| 2010 | 48,563 |
| 2009 | 51,762 |
| 2008 | 48,683 |
| 2007 | 44,801 |
| 2006 | 44,520 |
Government bands: Labour under Clark · National under Key and English · Labour under Ardern and Hipkins · National under Luxon
Many new registrations are overseas-trained nurses, and licensed doesn't mean working in New Zealand.
Licensed is not the same as employed in New Zealand; many are newly registered overseas-trained nurses.
Annual records put the current term's baseline in 2022, before Luxon took office. The spans are six and three years; annualised growth is also shown.
Source: OECD.
Check the full data