Winston Peters sparks House horror show; Chris Hipkins criticised over Labour policy vacuum – Audrey Young

It was Peters’ response to a question from Green MP Teanau Tuiono, who had asked Simpson: “Did he raise any concerns with the Minister of Foreign Affairs [Peters] or the Minister for Pacific Peoples when the decision was made to cut $100 million per year from New Zealand’s annual Pacific climate aid budget?”

It turns out from Peters’ lengthy explanation that the essence of his objection to Tuiono was his having used the term “Aotearoa” in a previous question, but Peters clearly bungled his question.

And he was wrong anyway. Not that it should matter one jot, but Tuiono was born in Henderson and raised in Levin, Ōtāhuhu and Manurewa, and he spent a few years in the Cook Islands. He is of Cook Islands descent on his father’s side, but from Atiu, not Rarotonga. On his mother’s side he is Ngāi Takoto, an iwi north of Kaitaia, and he speaks fluent Māori.

The episode wasn’t the only shock in the House this week. On Tuesday, Peters’ New Zealand First colleague Shane Jones was giving an explanation of why he has put a two-year ban on taking invertebrate and seaweed species from rock pools on the Hibiscus Coast. “When the busloads arrive, no rock pool can survive something akin to the oriental express,” he said.

In the same week that Peters and Jones pushed the boundaries, their party’s growing support (now at 10%) was confirmed in the latest 1News-Verian poll. Peters’ preferred PM rating is also at 10%. In the same poll, the current coalition of National, Act and New Zealand First would be returned.

No one was more outraged at what Peters said yesterday than Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. But she herself caused offence with a social media post on Valentine’s Day.

Under a drawing of Captain Cook being speared to death in Hawaii in 1779, she wrote: “Captain Cook was a British coloniser who invaded the Pacific, bringing with him disease and death. February 14 is the day that Kānakā Maoli took down a threat to their people and their land and this is the real celebration today.”

Chris Hipkins’ dilemma when faced with race-baiting or racism is whether to condemn it, thereby amplifying it and giving the antagonists exactly what they want. After this week’s examples, and because he was leading off the general debate that follows Question Time on Wednesday, he went for it in a spirited attack on NZ First and National for its silence.

“In the last few days and weeks, we have seen an ugly side to New Zealand politics on display in this House, with outright race-baiting and, in some cases, direct racism being expressed in this House – attacks on our Chinese and Asian communities in New Zealand, attacks on our Indian communities in New Zealand, and, just today, attacks on whether those who have Pasifika heritage are entitled to ask questions in this House.

“What have we heard from the Government side on those attacks? Absolutely nothing. My challenge to the National Party is absolutely clear in election year: what are they going to do to combat and challenge that racism that we are already seeing in this year’s election campaign? It is totally unacceptable, and it is totally unacceptable for those who are leading our country to say nothing and do nothing whilst ministers in their own government are doing that to the people of New Zealand.”

Hipkins received a mauling by a few members of the Press Gallery on his way into caucus on Tuesday because he won’t make spending promises on issues such as climate change adaptation and pay equity until after the Government has produced its Budget.

It’s a perfectly legitimate position to take, because policy has to be based on credible Treasury forecasts and accounts that show what spending promises are baked into the books. You have to know what you’d keep or ditch before funding your own promises.

Last election, National was incredibly late in producing its own plans. It released its own tax policy six weeks before the election and its final fiscal plan just two weeks before it.

But it is making political life very difficult for Labour because all it does is criticise instead of coming up with alternative commitments. It is frustrating for the voting public and leaves Labour open to criticism of the type meted out by Newstalk ZB host Mike Hosking this week. He rubbished Chris Bishop’s intention to get bipartisan involvement in infrastructure planning, saying that Labour were “not serious people”. That was based on what he sees as Labour politicking over the India free trade agreement.

The Government has not done a great job of explaining the details of the deal. Not to fear, because I have done it here.

• National Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford talked to my colleague Adam Pearse about the MP’s recent wedding, held just a few days after the Mt Maunganui landslide. See below.

• National Whanganui MP Carl Bates has cause for celebration. He sponsored a bill which was passed into law last night, extending the age at which it is easy get out of jury duty from 65 to 72.

• Labour list MP Kieran McAnulty is set to get a liquor bill passed into law after it hosed through its second reading last night on a personal vote, 67 to 54. It will remove the need for pubs and restaurants to provide “a substantial meal” with any alcohol consumed on Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Christmas Day.

• National is hosting its annual Blue-Green environmental forum this weekend in Wellington.

• Labour leader Chris Hipkins will deliver a state-of-the-nation speech on Monday in Auckland.

Labour’s Barbara Edmonds to Finance Minister Nicola Willis: “Has she been advised, with food prices soaring, whether the Prime Minister can still do his weekly shop for $60?”

Willis: “This follows a trend of recent final supplementary questions from the opposing member in which she gets personal and nasty, and I’m not going to sink to that level.”

Who said this yesterday about Labour’s front bench – Christopher Luxon, David Seymour or Mike Hosking? “I wouldn’t employ any of them in a lower middle management job.” (Answer at the bottom of this article.)

Goes to Winston Peters, Shane Jones and Debbie Ngarewa Packer for their offensive comments (see above).

Goes to David Seymour as minister in charge of Pharmac. Whatever else you say about Seymour, he has been outstanding in the role. More treatments for blood cancers are set to be funded.

Drug funding: Blood cancer patient lauds ‘brilliant’ drug funding, ministers avoid saying whether failed promise now honoured

Analysis – interest rates: Reserve Bank’s dovish statement to pause mortgage rate hikes for now – Jenée Tibshraeny

MUMA bullying claims: CEO on extended leave, Matt McCarten says behaviour has changed

Dog attacks: NZ First leader Winston Peters says dog owners deserve manslaughter charges after fatal attacks

Mount tragedy: Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford opens up on his wedding held after Mount tragedy

India-NZ FTA: ‘She’s not a trained lawyer’: Winston Peters hits out at India’s top diplomat in NZ over FTA remarks

India-NZ FTA: Labour sets its price for supporting India trade deal, chides PM for keeping party in the dark

Analysis – Infrastructure Plan: Infrastructure Commission asks Labour and National to do something unpopular – Thomas Coughlan

Bridge toll: Government getting advice on tolling Auckland Harbour Bridge to fund new crossing

Infrastructure Plan: ‘Hard truths’ – Infrastructure plan warns less money for roads, more for hospitals

Labour law overhaul: Government closes in on major employment law changes – here’s what the legislation does

Latest polling: Coalition Government would be re-elected on latest 1News-Verian poll, but both major parties down

Quiz answer: Christopher Luxon

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