Jostling for position as political winds begin to shift
THERE’S A strange sound emanating from Wellington. It’s not the low hum currently perplexing the residents of Mt Victoria: but the sound of political scrambling.
If the Roy Morgan poll last week (Nats down to 41 per cent support, Labour up to 33) didn’t spell it out, you’ve only to check that fairweather friend Peter Dunne as a political barometer.
In the past few weeks he has publicly lashed his allies in government over the illegal spying scandal and repeatedly mocked Act leader John Banks, even as Prime Minister John Key was defending him in the House. He also upped the PR ante, with a press conference on legal highs and an announcement on car park tax. He also used his casting vote to support two Labour bills to ‘‘Mondayise’’ public holidays and increase paid parental leave.
As Labour begin to pick up in the polls (a TV3 poll out tonight will be the real test of that momentum), Dunne is the kid on the sidelines, eyes-screwed shut, willing David Shearer to ‘‘pick me, pick me’’. Also sniffing the wind is another of Labour’s fairweather friends: John Tamihere.
But if he’s looking to be welcomed back with open arms, going on telly to diss the caucus was about as smart as firing off crude text messages about mussels to a staffer. He swapped revolting remarks about ‘‘front bums’’ for taking a swipe at Labour’s female front bench: Jacinda Ardern, Maryan Street and Nanaia Mahuta.
On paper, Tamihere looks good for Labour – decent constituency, touch of showbiz, appeals to Maori and blue-collar. But the party has barely managed to toilet-paper over the cracks resulting from the leadership race. Not everyone in caucus is as delighted as Shearer with the idea of Tamihere’s resurrection. Carmel Sepuloni has a decent shot at beating Paula Bennett in Waitakere (there were just nine votes in it in November). Where’s the sense in further dividing the party over a man who is still demonstrating the lack of political judgement that cost him his seat seven years ago?
What the party is crying out for is fresh blood – you have only to