The ACT party says a Labour pledge to gradually introduce free dental care for under-30s is a "populist fantasy" and a desperate voter bribe.
It comes as Labour announced the policy today at its campaign launch in Auckland, where leader Chris Hipkins' speech was interrupted several times by protesters who had to be escorted out.
ACT leader David Seymour said Labour was "desperately bribing voters with 'free' stuff".
"New Zealanders are rejecting their cynical and failed policies.
“New Zealanders know the government books are in terrible shape and they want fiscally responsible policies, not promises of untargeted spending six weeks out from an election.
“Even Chris Hipkins knows Labour’s free dental promise is impossible.
"Labour’s campaign is now win at all costs, and bugger the state they leave the country in."
Seymour said Hipkins showed he had no values by "shamelessly announcing an un-costed populist policy he knows doesn’t add up".
“Faced with some bad polls and creeping desperation, Labour has resorted to announcing populist fantasy policies they know they can’t deliver and will only cost Kiwis more. It is exactly the cynical type of politics that Kiwis are sick of."
He said ACT had been announcing practical policies that addressed the causes of problems.
“Kiwis now have a clear choice. Labour’s stunt policies and track record of failure, or ACT’s real solutions to the challenges of inflation, lawlessness, and division.
National's Chris Bishop said the Labour government had a "long history" of over-promising and under-delivering.
He said National supported wider access to dental care and would like to do it in the future.
"But to do that you have to have a strong economy and that is where Labour have monumentally failed. Where Labour has failed National will deliver. We will get this country back on track by rebuilding the economy and fixing our cost of living crisis."
Greens health spokesman Ricardo Menéndez March said free dental care could go further if funded from a wealth tax.
"With more Green MPs we can build on Labour’s announcement today and make dental care free for everyone.
“With a strong Green voice we can be bolder and provide free dental to everyone, paid for with a wealth tax."
Association of Salaried Medical Specialists executive director Sarah Dalton said her organisation had advocated for a more universal approach to dental services for a long time.
"This shows our politicians are listening and gives everyone interested in dental a real choice at the upcoming election."
More than two-fifths of New Zealanders have unmet dental needs, she said, and in the last decade New Zealand had a 31% increase in hospitalisations due to dental ill health.
"Cost is clearly the key barrier preventing people from getting to a dentist early. When we surveyed people last year, 72% had delayed going to the dentist because of cost. We’re starting to get serious about tackling that."
"On the other side of the equation it’s financially prudent for the country as a whole. New Zealand Dental Association research in 2019, using Treasury’s cost-benefit analysis tools, found a return of $1.60 on every dollar spent on better dental care."
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