Shalise Tanzy

Can you tell me a little bit more about that?

And so what was it like in the room when Hegseth said that comment, the freeloader comment?

Who else was in the room when you asked this question and how did they react?

Now, when you had asked that question, Chris Pink, who was our Minister for Defence, was also present.

How did he react to Hegseth's comments?

Do we need to appease America in terms of how much we spend?

When it comes to international perceptions and comments about how we should be spending our money or if we should be putting more money into our defence, do we need to take

our international partners' comments on our spending into consideration when we think about where we're putting money or how much we spend?

So how much do we spend on our Defence Force?

Here's David Cappy again.

So for right now, is that enough?

How does New Zealand's defence spending rack up against countries, for instance, like Australia or even our other Five Eyes partners?

Well, and that's the thing, because Pete Hegseth specified or stated that countries should be spending 3.5% of their GDP on defence, or he said it should become the new global norm.

Is it actually in New Zealand's interest to even spend that much to begin with?

So in terms of our spending, though, we have an ageing naval fleet.

We consistently hear about the ANZAC frigates that need to be replaced.

But we also have our defence workers who are being paid below market value.

So are we putting the money in the right places right now?

Let's break down the numbers.

According to the Defence Force's latest annual report, the Navy spent an estimated $782 million in 2025.