No consensus – more talks
Vance: “Now not committing to the end of the week”
Politics
elections
Wellington Political Theatre’s Waiting for Godot – a review
Beckett’s classic Waiting for Godot by the city’s oldest company, the Wellington Political Theatre, is a triumph.
Poor reporters
Spare a thought for our poor political reporters today.
Austria and Europe
Europe is showing a worrying trend to the right as anti immigration parties are voted into office. Austria provides the latest example.
This is the day *
* but delays are possible.
The first 100 days of a Labour led government
Maybe Peters learned from history and is not doomed to repeat it. If we get a Labour led government, what should be its top priorities in the first 100 days?
Nats – lousy at government – “brilliant” at opposition
Peters has the opportunity to put an end to this useless government (and turn National into “the opposition from hell”). I think he’s going to ’96 us, but I’d be happy to be proved wrong
Into the Vortex of Confirmation Bias: why we won’t be able to figure out which way Winston will go…
Every morning, as the waiting for Winston to decide continues to fray my fragile psyche, I can look at myself in the mirror, contemplate my own frenzied speculative hopes for an Ardern Prime Ministership, and immediately think of a host of strong social-methodological reasons why all such speculation is futile.
Lefties on The Standard #3
Another post on The Standard providing a discussion space for left-wing and progressive people only.
Another term of Nats bad news for democracy
It’s starting to feel a lot like 1996 all over again. Another term of the Nats would be bad news for the institutions of democracy. We’ve had recent warnings on the state of the justice system, press freedom, and the public service.
First Past the Post nostalgia
A timely reminder that we replaced FPP for very good reasons.
Every body wants to rule the world
D day approaches. What will happen? Will we have a decaying toothless National Government moderated by coalition with New Zealand First or will we have something more exciting?
Last day of talks
It’s the last day of coalition talks (probably). Peters has certainly created big expectations of “change”, but what they will mean in practice is still anyone’s guess.
Green options
If the Greens prioritise change over power, then the whole ‘they have no leverage’ rhetoric becomes less important than the fact that the Greens are necessary to form government but still have choices in how they participate in that.
Guest post: Deconstructing yet another National has moral right to govern argument
A guest post by Swordfish on the implausibility of the claims by Dr Claire Robinson’s odd claim that the 2017 election result was a win for the status quo.
Peters policy priorities
Peters’ policy priorities are clearly anathema to National. Depending on the details Labour may be more accommodating, but it’s a risky path given signs that “the economy” is already flatlining.
Announcement delayed
Great news for all those who are enjoying the suspense!
Nats’ secret tax plan
Newsroom (Shane Cowlishaw) reports that the Nats were considering significant hikes to fuel taxes, described in a document that was supposed to be released before the election – but somehow wasn’t.
Is there a Role for the Governor General in Coalition Formation?
MMP is challenging the traditional role of the Governor General in determining who should lead the Government after an election.
Politics or Policy?
Policy is everything, Winston Peters said today. This should not be a surprise. Before every election, he has refused to give any hint of Party support preference until after the vote. But he will have thought a lot about what he might want, as it has long been clear that his Party would decide the outcome. So what are his policies?
Prepare for four days of hot air
Expect to see agendas on display, and egos, and reckons, and the occasional gleaned factoid. But don’t expect predictions to be any better than chance.
Why Labour may form the next Government
The prospects of a Labour led Government have improved dramatically following the release of the final election results.
And the final result is …
The final election results have been announced with Labour and the Greens each picking up an extra seat.
Young on coalition options – an edge to Labour
Audrey Young on the coalition dance: “Labour would probably have an advantage because of the greater policy overlap”, “Keeping deputy leader Paula Bennett out of the first pro-forma courtesy meeting was an appalling decision by English that simply says he was desperate to please Peters at any cost”.
Coalition of liars
The right wing clobbering machine is already calling a possible Labour Green NZF a “coalition of losers”. Well under MMP a coalition of losers can be the winners. But however you cut it a coalition of liars will always be liars.
The Green Party’s coalition process
Important in the Green’s coalition deal-making process is the party’s political positioning, and the internal processes that the party is obligated to follow. Both of those things reflect deeper values around policy and decision making. Here’s a look at what processes the Greens will follow in the coming weeks and who will be involved.
Specials tomorrow
The special vote count should be out at 2pm tomorrow. The mathematically plausible scenarios are either good, or very good, for the left.
Pike River families win a “political reality”
Among the biggest winners of the election will be the Pike River families. Labour and Greens support re-entry. Gower on National: “They will not go into Opposition over this… They will literally go back on everything they’ve said in order to get Winston into power.”
Preliminary talks underway
Preliminary talks between NZF and National have concluded, talks between NZF and Labour are due this afternoon. (Image from Vernon Small)
Ten Reasons for National to do another term
A tongue in cheek list of reasons why it may be best for National to form the next Government.
Electoral Commission refers Sean Plunket’s tweets to the police
The Opportunities Party’s election campaign Communications Director and recent appointee to the Broadcasting Standards Authority has had their election day tweets referred to the police.
Good call from Ardern
I have very mixed feelings about a Labour Green NZF government. I certainly don’t think that Labour should “pay any price”. So I’m pleased to see Jacinda Ardern acknowledging the Greens.
Uncertainty doesn’t bother “the market” at all
There is no “strong and stable” government to “lead” us. Maximum uncertainty! No end in sight! According to received wisdom (and all those people in a self-interested rush to ordain the born-to-rule-party) the market should be panicking! In fact…
Cling to power vs the right thing to do
The Nats are desperate to make big concessions for a coalition with the Greens. The establishment is lining up in The Herald to beg for this to happen. Promises to strengthen environmental and social policies in order to cling to power – but not for the last nine long years when it was simply the right thing to do…
Resistance is futile …
The Standard regular Incognito writes about the unique voice the Greens bring to NZ politics and why a coalition deal with National would be the end of that.
The Herald doesn’t want Winston to go with Labour
The Herald has offered a number of opinions this weekend saying that Labour forming a coalition with New Zealand First would be a very bad thing.