The Heron Report
The Heron Report has been released and reinforces the public perception that this was a cynical misuse of confidential information by National for political purposes and a clusterfuck of epic proportions.
political parties
national
Pollwatch: Colmar Brunton poll released 2020-07-30
Poll analysis and modelling results: Is Colmar Brunton “the real rogue?” Who’s likely in and out for National, Labour, and the Greens on this poll result?
One News CB Poll July 2020
The July One News Colmar Brunton poll is out at 6PM. Has Judith Collins worked the oracle? Or is it another of Gerry Brownlee’s rogue polls?
Stay tuned …
UPDATE: Labour in the 50’s, National 32
Kia kaha Sarah Dowie
Sarah Dowie’s valedictory speech yesterday was extremely good and offered a fascinating insight into Parliamentary life and some notable recent events.
Strategic voting is a bad thing unless you live in Epsom
Nick Smith has publicly opposed a change to the electoral system that would allow strategic manipulation of the electoral system. But only by Māori.
Will Jami Lee spill the beans on National’s donations?
Jami-Lee Ross is threatening today to attempt to table details of National’s 2017 donations in Parliament.
National’s Internal Polling Leaked
Yet another leak from Judith Collins’ Strong Team™. This time it’s their own polling … and it’s grim news.
How do you tell when Judith is saying something that is not true?
Judith Collins has backed away from telling a mistruth about escape statistics during her time as Minister of Corrections by claiming that her eyebrow was raised and this is evidence that what she was saying was a joke.
New Zealand believes Labour are better economic managers than National
There used to be a mantra in New Zealand politics that National were always perceived to be better managers of the economy than Labour. Until now.
Pollwatch: Reid Research poll completed 2020-07-24
Labour has hit stratospheric highs in the new Reid Research poll at 60.9%, and still have a strong partner in the Greens at 5.7%. Who’s in and out on these numbers? How has Collins performed?
Latest Newshub Reid Research poll – yet another rogue poll
Tova O’Brien said that it would be a bombshell result and it was.
Winston Peters Names Alleged Super Leaker
Winston Peters has named the person he says leaked his super details. Has ACT joined National in doing Dirty Politics?
What is the best way for a political party to handle a sex scandal?
Judith Collins appears to be living by her motto, giving back double, and has made public allegations that a Labour Minister has engaged in inappropriate behaviour. But is this the best way to handle a sex scandal?
Strong team?
Earlier this year National boasted that it had a strong team. But this was before two coups and the loss of seven MPs in the past few weeks, the latest for sending indecent material to a teenager which the leader initially described as a case involving mental health concerns.
Another Nat MP Quits
Another Tory MP has quit. This time it’s first term MP Andrew Falloon.
UPDATE: The PM was informed on Friday, but chose to be discreet.
UPDATE: NewsHub are claiming that Falloon sent porn to a schoolgirl.
UPDATE: The victim was a uni student and her age means no offence was committed. Further, Falloon claims it was not him that sent the pic.
Wellington Central: Should Grant Robertson Stand Aside?
Should Labour’s Grant Robertson stand aside in Wellington Central to guarantee the Greens are available to be a coalition partner?
National’s next Auckland Central candidate?
With Nikki Kaye’s shock retirement announcement National urgently needs a new candidate. One name springs to mind.
Will the last remaining National MP please not forget to turn off the caucus room lights
The Herald is reporting that Nikki Kaye will announce her retirement from politics today.
What Could National Do To Win?
Ok sure, they won’t. You list why. But here’s the top five things National could do to give themselves a better shot.
Roy Morgan Poll July 2020
The latest Roy Morgan Poll is further bad news for National and a stark warning for NZ First.
If Judith and Gerry are the answer it must have been a desperate question
In a great leap backwards Judith Collins and Gerry Brownlee are now leaders of the National Party.
Collins crushes caucus vote
Twitter confirms that Judith Collins is now National leader. She is the perfect candidate if your goal is to stem the bleeding of support. She is not the candidate if you want to win the election …
National needs a safe pair of hands: Amy Adams
I realise that National probably won’t appreciate my advice. However I actually would like to have a viable competent opposition. I don’t even want an election to be as much of a pushover as this one is likely to be. If I was a stalwart National supporter or a member of their caucus, I’d be pushing for Amy Adams.
Muller goes, bring back Simon?
In breaking news Todd Muller has resigned for “health reasons”, effective immediately.
Time to bring back Simon?
Updated with some breaking links.
National’s ethics
There is a particularly resonant piece by Tim Watkin in Pundit. “National’s problem with privacy and privilege”. I’m only surprised that he seems to think that the National party is redeemable. They’re so into their internal myths that they fail to regard anyone or any threat as unless their voting base poll well on it. But that is National for you – they’ve consistent…. Stupid, unhelpful and short on ethics.
Of course it’s dirty politics
National’s latest attempted spin is to try and suggest that last week’s clusterfuck of rolling events did not involve in any way the slightest trace of dirty politics. How wrong they are.
The Christian Right and the 2020 election
A variety of Christian parties have attempted to gain a place in Parliament. What are the chances in 2020 of a conservative Christian Party succeeding in gaining seats?
Jian Yang announces retirement so he can spend more time with his family
Jian Yang, he with impeccable Chinese Communist Party links and of formidable fundraising ability, has announced that he is is retiring from politics.
Did any National MP not receive confidential information from Michelle Boag?
Michael Woodhouse has admitted that he received confidential information from Michelle Boag a couple of weeks before he said that it was “unconscionable and unacceptable” that the leaks were happening.
Everybody gets a road
National has made two major roading project announcements in the past week. Both announcements recycled announcements that were also made before the last election.
Some Random impertinent questions about Michelle Boag’s access to confidential medical information
Westpac Helicopter Trust’s claim that it had not breached privacy rights of Covid sufferers raises some serious questions about why Michelle Boag was provided with sensitive information. And who she has provided it to.
Walkergate: MP Quits
Privacy breaching MP Hamish Walker has announced he will step down at the next election. But who else should go?
Update: Muller tries to divert attention by announcing that National still want a 4 lane highway from Chch to Ashburton. Problem solved!
Trashing the country’s Covid response for political advantage
As details emerge about Hamish Walker’s leaking of confidential information of Covid sufferers for political advantage, questions are being asked about Todd Muller’s leadership and if National is actually committed to assisting the country’s response to Covid 19.
Clusterfuck
Hamish Walker and Michelle Boag have admitted leaking private information about covid sufferers for political gain.
Does National actually have any policy?
National has recently been upping the campaign rhetoric but there is a disturbing lack of policy detail.
National’s “intelligence unit” kicks into gear
A month ago a leak from National’s caucus said that they had set up an intelligence unit designed to dig up dirt on opponents. Yesterday Newshub ran a story based on a candidate’s seven year old tweets. It looks like the intelligence unit has been busy.