Don’t worry, Winston – the Greens will save you

It cannot have escaped Winston’s attention that his party is now polling at less than 4%, and that it will take a lot of obfuscation and promises to survive this time. Fortunately for Winston, he is not alone. The Greens made it back into parliament by the skin of their teeth last time, and are also polling at slightly below the 5% threshold. The Greens nearly always make it in the end, albeit by a small margin, but they have decided it is time to stop taking risks. The Greens are sponsoring a Members bill to reduce the MMP threshold to 4%… without a referendum, and before the next election.

The Greens are urging the Government to adopt a bill that would overturn the prisoner voting ban, abolish the coat-tails rule and reduce the threshold to 4 per cent.

The new member’s bill is being championed by Green Party spokeswoman for electoral reform, Golriz Ghahraman,? and has been lodged into the members’ ballot. end quote.

No surprises there. Golriz was the last Green MP to get in on the list. Her position at the trough is at risk. She wants prisoners to be able to vote too. quote.

“Voting during elections [for prisoners] would engage them in society and mean they are exercising a fundamental human right ? the right to cast a vote.” end quote.

I thought no human right was absolute, Golriz… or does that rule apply only to people who want free speech? Remember this?

But back to MMP… quote.

Just consider, for a moment, if this rule had applied in 2014. We may then have had a Labour led government, in coalition with the Greens, the Maori Party, Mana and the Internet Party, and possibly United Future. That would have made for a stable government, wouldn’t it? Colin Craig’s Conservatives would also have made it into parliament. Tell me again why having lots of small parties in parliament would be a good thing?

This bill will pass, of course, because everyone in the Coalition of Losers will support it. The fact that the people of New Zealand will probably not support it is irrelevant.

This will almost certainly guarantee the Greens a political future, as they have enough ground roots (excuse the pun) support to get them over the 4% threshold just about all of the time. They may struggle at 5%, but 4% should be no problem. That is what this is all about, of course.

Winston will be a likely beneficiary too. In spite of his supposed hatred of the Greens, he will vote in favour of this, because his own party stands to benefit enormously. In fact, this bill could snatch NZ First back from the brink of political oblivion in the way that no amount of pork barreling seems to be able to do.

You may have noticed that Winston seems to be softening his position on capital gains tax at present. He has said very little on the subject, and has been heard to be talking about ‘fairness’ in the tax system, parroting Jacinda on the subject. Could it be that he has agreed to allow the tax to go through if this bill is passed? That would be a total sellout on the part of NZ First, surely?

Winston is the Minister of Racing. Maybe he should be renamed the Minister of Horse Trading.

Christie

Accountant. Boring. Loves tax. Needs to get out more. Loves the environment, but hates the Greens. Has been called a dinosaur. Wears it with pride.

To read my previous articles click on my name in blue.