He worked in the Māori secretariat in the Ministry for the Environment and later in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, providing advice to the Fourth Labour Government on settling Treaty of Waitangi breaches.

[18][19][20]After the fisheries settlement was passed by Parliament in 2004, Jones announced he was interested in standing for the Labour Party at the upcoming election.

While Jones did not win Northland, he entered Parliament as a list MP and was immediately made the chair of the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee.

During his six years as an opposition MP, Jones held various portfolios in the Goff, Shearer and Cunliffe shadow cabinets including building and construction, infrastructure, economic development, transport, fisheries, forestry and Māori affairs.

[23] The credit card record showed that he chartered an executive jet for $1200, which he claimed was due to bad weather which forced a change in his schedule.

[24] Four days later, opposition leader Phil Goff demoted Jones along with two other Labour MPs for misuse of ministerial credit cards.

[25] As Associate Minister of Immigration in 2008, Jones approved the citizenship application of Labour Party donor, Chinese businessman and later convicted money launderer William Yan, also known as Bill Liu.

Jones had acted against officials' advice that he should decline the application because of questions about Yan's multiple identities and a warrant for his arrest in China.

Jones defended his decision, saying it was based on humanitarian grounds because a high-level Government official had told him that Yan faced execution if he returned to China.

[29] When it reported back the following year, it found no evidence that there was any improper motive, collusion, or political interference in the decision to authorise citizenship.

[30] In 2014, while economic development spokesperson, Jones alleged that Progressive Enterprises, owner of Countdown supermarkets, was involved in racketeering and extortion.

[11] Ten years later, The Spinoff founder Duncan Grieve would write Jones' candidacy was less an "expectation of success than [a] signal he felt his banishment had ended.

He was appointed to the newly created role of Pacific Economic Ambassador by Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully.

On 25 September 2019, Jones and Labour MP Kieran McAnulty were ejected from Parliament by the Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard after trading barbs with National MPs during a parliamentary debate about Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's meeting with US President Donald Trump.

[56][57] A rally in protest of Jones' remarks was held on 3 November 2019 by members of the Migrant Workers Association and Love Aotearoa Hate Racism.

[60][61] On 5 November 2019, Jones described the community response as a "Bollywood reaction" and claimed that he was speaking for New Zealanders who were anxious about immigration.

[62] The following year, Jones claimed in a television interview that immigration was placing "enormous stress" on the country's social and economic infrastructure and that the large number of international students from India had ruined New Zealand tertiary institutions.

"[67] Federated Farmers vice president Andrew Hoggard described Jones' comments as unhelpful and alleged that the Government was ignoring the agricultural sector's concerns.

[77][78][79] In mid-August 2023, he released a TikTok video of himself singing to the tune of the American rock band Journey's song "Don't Stop Believin'".

[84] In late January 2024, Jones along with his New Zealand First and National parties colleagues including Winston Peters and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon attended the Rātana Church's special annual hui (meeting).

[86] In late March 2024, Jones as Fisheries Minister announced the Government had halted work on legislation to create a 620,000sqkm ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands.

In response, Jones told Waatea News during an interview that "the Waitangi Tribunal has no business running its operations as some sort of star chamber delivering summons for ministers to rock up and be cross-examined or grilled."

Jones' remarks were criticised as inappropriate by the Māori Law Society, who complained to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Attorney-General Judith Collins.

Jones argued that reversing the ban on oil and gas exploration would help attract investment and promote economic growth and jobs.

Green Party immigration spokesperson Ricardo Menéndez March condemned Jones' comments, arguing that they emboldened xenophobia and were intended to spark division.

[95] On 12 February 2025, Jones announced that the Government would be making changes to the Quota Management System including excluding ship camera footage from Official Information Act requests.

[98] During Māori King Tūheitia Paki's 18th Koroneihana (coronation anniversary celebration) in mid-August 2024,[99] Jones reiterated that NZ First would not support the Treaty Principles Bill beyond its first reading.

[107][108] Jones has also attracted scrutiny due to his links to the tobacco industry and New Zealand First successfully pressing for the repeal of smoke free legislation as part of its coalition agreement with the National Party.

According to Radio New Zealand, Philip Morris International's external relations director and former NZ First staffer Api Dawson attended Jones' swearing-in ceremony at Parliament in late 2023.