This is likely to be an unpopular column. But there are some things that need to be said, and some debates that need to take place. Over a year into the Covid19 crisis there is an unnatural air abroad where it is still not at all acceptable to question or criticise aspects of New Zealand’s handling of the virus. Yet our lives have been changed and customary freedoms impacted upon to the greatest extent imaginable outside of wartime. 

Let me make it clear at the outset that I am not questioning the broad sweep of New Zealand’s response to Covid19, nor am I making a political attack on the government or Ministers within it over the way they have handled things. My concern and puzzlement run deeper than that. 

One of the great things I have always admired about our national character is our inherent scepticism and talent for spotting cant a long way away off. We have always been a nation of doubting Thomases, wary of anything that looks new or different but more than willing to embrace change if the evidence justifies it. And even then we have always reserved the right to question and to probe as the journey unfolds, to make sure we are satisfied it is broadly taking the direction originally indicated. 

This agnostic scepticism has permeated our national consciousness for generations, it has been a constant theme in our literature and culture throughout. Our natural intolerance of people who are “up themselves” or think “they know what is best for us” is legendary as is our hitherto derisory dismissal of too much government interference in our daily lives as “Nanny state”. 

All this seems to have gone by the wayside in the wake of the arrival of Covid19. Any criticism now is quietly and apologetically whispered only, then quickly replaced instead by the near constant nauseating incantation of belonging to the “team of five million.” 

Some will point the finger at the government over this – I do not. They are doing their job, and are doing it well, although somewhat dishonestly. Despite their constant denials, they are treating the response to Covid19 in an inherently political way, from the staged daily press conferences that say very little, through to the tight control over the release of information, and the very small echo chamber of selected health professionals who, having had a hand in designing the policy approach, can then be relied on to endorse it uncritically. Whenever a dissenting health professional view has been presented, no matter the eminence of the commentator, it has been quickly dismissed and shut down as ill-informed or irrelevant. 

But the government is doing what any government would do in such circumstances – making sure that its decisions and actions are also good politics. That is what all governments do, and those that are good at it – like ours – get re-elected, while those that are bad at it do not survive. For example, contrast the differing fates of the Trump Administration and the New Zealand government at their respective elections last year. 

By way of balance, enabling us to assess whether the government of the day is performing well and deserving of continued support, we rely on the Parliamentary Opposition and the news media to analyse what is happening and provide alternative viewpoints for us to weigh up and decide on their validity. 

This is where things are failing at present. Two of our major media outlets – the state-owned Television New Zealand, and the Stuff network – have become mere mouthpieces, and in the particular case of Television New Zealand enthusiastic uncritical cheerleaders, for virtually every action that the government has taken. Even when the Director-General of Health changes tack on mass community lockdowns and insists there has been no change of approach, when clearly there has been, his assertions are reported faithfully without challenge, despite the evidence to the contrary. 

At the same time, whenever the Opposition has arisen from its heavy slumber to offer a viewpoint, these outlets have either largely ignored what it has to say or presented the story in the most negative and critical way. I am not defending any comments they might make, rather their right to speak out and be treated the same way as the government in the presentation of their views. The usual criticism from governments has been that the media were almost another version of the Opposition, something that could not be said at present. 

Worse than all of that, though, is that we as a population have acquiesced in all this. Our natural wariness and scepticism have given way to what amounts to an unhealthy fear of “rocking the boat” if we dare query what is going on.

That has been accompanied by a new sense of officiousness from people like transport officials or airline staff who feel they can bark instructions at their customers about what they can and cannot do in a way that would never have been tolerated as appropriate or even courteous a year ago. The “sheeple” are being skilfully herded into one narrow compliance pen, and, more is the worry, they do not appear to be objecting. 

With the advent of a vaccination programme here (at last) and small signs that the grip of the virus is lessening abroad, meaning something akin to life as we once knew it might be about to return, we need to recapture our proud national spirit of healthy scepticism and independence. That has been our national hallmark and our challenge now is to reclaim that, rather than continue to rely meekly on the government to tell us what we can and cannot do. 

The media has a critical role in ensuring that the diversity of national opinion can be heard again, without being immediately dismissed as negative or unhelpful. It is not its role to decide the value or merit of particular opinions – that is our right to decide for ourselves as citizens and voters, based on the impartiality and accuracy of the information we get from the media. It needs to recapture the capacity to constructively critique and stop treating all questioning as negative criticism. 

But above all, the community generally needs to snap out of the of mood of national sycophancy and uncritical compliance that has taken over the country in the last year. As New Zealanders we have been and are much better than that, and the time has come for us to start showing it again. 

This does not mean any lessening or wilful defiance of our national compliance response, nor that the government should change what it is doing. Rather, it is a straightforward case of calling for a return of the days where critical analysis and tolerance of independent thought were valued as important – the things we used to pride ourselves on – rather than more of the unadulterated, mealy-mouthed propaganda that has passed for news in recent months. We are a far more aware and intelligent country than the errant child the authorities have been happy to treat us as over the last year. It is high time we were treated as adults once more.

   

Citizenship is the gift that seems to keep on giving as far as Australia and New Zealand are concerned. The Prime Ministers of both countries are adept at using citizenship issues to their mutual advantage, to score political points with their domestic audiences. For Australia, deporting New Zealand citizens who may have lived most of their lives in Australia but have been in prison in Australia plays well with its voters, as does depriving dual citizens of their Australian citizenship if their primary citizenship is New Zealand. Or elsewhere. For their part, New Zealanders love nothing more than evincing moral outrage at heavy-handed and insensitive decisions affecting us, made by Australian politicians. 

It is a win-win for both countries, and both the current Prime Ministers are particularly skilled at playing the roles their respective countries expect of them. Scott Morrison is effective at the “Australia first, keeping Australia safe for Australians” game, which Australians like, while Jacinda Ardern is equally effective at the outraged humanitarian response which resonates with New Zealanders. It is great theatre – and both know it – which is why, with the frequency of cracked records, they will continue to play it, whenever they can. 

This week’s incident over the “terrorist” woman and her two children detained in Turkey is but the latest in a long line of examples. Knowing she was a New Zealand citizen, with dual Australian citizenship, Australia had no hesitation in earlier revoking her Australian citizenship. Because she was already a New Zealand citizen by birth, she would become our problem, but also would not be left stateless in the process. In that regard, she was in no different a situation than the large number of New Zealand citizens deported from Australia in recent years at the completion of sentences. 

The complication in this case, which sparked the New Zealand Prime Minister’s concern, was that the woman has two young children. Removal of her Australian citizenship has deprived them of the immediate right to claim Australian citizenship by descent (because they were not born in Australia) thus raising questions about their status in terms of the Vienna Convention on the Rights of Children. (Because they were born overseas to a New Zealand citizen by birth they face a similar situation with regard to New Zealand. They do not have New Zealand citizenship as of right, but can apply for citizenship by descent at a later stage.) Their position in the meantime is unclear – on both sides of the Tasman. 

The long-standing international principle which no Western nation seriously challenges is that those who become citizens of a country by virtue of being born in that country cannot be deprived of that citizenship, no matter their conduct. To that extent, Australia is right when it says it will deport those it regards as undesirable to the country of their birth, because they are that country’s problem, no matter how long they have been away from it.

However, it is at the extreme edge of moral acceptability when it applies the policy with the rigidity it does, often deporting at short notice people who may have not lived in their home country since they were very young children, and who may no longer have familial links that country. At the other end of the spectrum, New Zealand is on shaky ground when it objects to these returnees, who are legally our problem, being “dumped” here, but is on far stronger ground when it takes issue with the uncaring and callous way in which Australia applies its domestic policy, and calls out Australia for doing so. It is probably in the domestic political interests of both countries for there to be no immediate solution to this. 

The ritual we are seeing being played out right now regarding the current case is typically bizarre. Australia and New Zealand are taking pot shots at each other over the case, pointlessly each saying that the responsibility rests with the other, while the woman and her children languish in Turkish detention. And, as they snipe, the respective Prime Ministers score political points with their respective national audiences. 

That is where the current case will most likely rest, like those before it, were it not for the children. New Zealand’s Prime Minister has already expressed concern about their situation – about which very little has been said publically so far – and it would not be beyond the realms of possibility in this instance for New Zealand to be involved in mediating some form of solution which protects, while leaving their mother at arms’ length to fend for herself. 

The only certainty about this case is that the next time a similar case arises, like two seasoned performers, Scott Morrison and Jacinda Ardern will drag themselves once more onto the dual stage of high dudgeon and moral outrage to reprise the parts they have played so predictably over recent years, for yet one more curtain call. Until next time.     

  

 

Maori Party Co-leader Rawiri Waititi is emerging as one of the stars of the 53^rd Parliament. This is not yet because of the profundity of his comments – that may be still to come – but because of the style he has brought to his role. Already, he would be one of the most well-known Members of Parliament, a considerable achievement for someone elected from a minor party, currently Parliament’s smallest, for the first time at last year’s election.

In this is because of his physical presence – he is the first MP with a mataora moko or full facial tattoo in around 150 years. Add to that his distinctive hats, already the subject of much comment, especially when worn in the Parliamentary debating chamber, and Mr Waititi was clearly marked out as someone to watch, even before this week’s stoush with the Speaker over whether his hei-tiki met Parliament’s definition of appropriate neckwear for male MPs.

The hei-tiki affair is a complete storm in a teacup. It is neither the constitutional outrage Mr Waititi is trying to beat it up to be, nor the assault on Parliament’s Standing Orders the Speaker has implied. It has been clumsily and somewhat arrogantly handled by the Speaker, perhaps feeling under a little pressure following the Opposition making it clear they no longer have any confidence in him. The inconsistency of Mr Mallard’s reaction has been underscored by the fact that he had earlier allowed Mexican born Green MP Ricardo Menendez March to wear a Bona bolo tie on the grounds it was reflective of his culture. On that basis alone it is rather difficult to argue against Mr Waititi’s hei-tiki.

Nor is this issue about whether male MPs should be required to wear ties in the chamber. The Speaker has already polled Members on that point and the majority stated a preference to retain ties. Mr Mallard looked initially somewhat awkward protesting that in view of that he had little option but to respect Members’ wishes, even though he personally is against ties. Now, having changed his mind and rejected Members’ views, because of Mr Waititi’s stance, he just looks plain silly. Fancy tying himself into such a knot over neckties!

The real point of the hei-tiki issue is that Mr Waititi knows that like his hat, the hei-tiki can be quickly established as part of his brand as an MP to be used to his political advantage time and again. It marks him out as clearly different from other MPs, and that difference alone will attract interest in him, and, over time, what he and his Party have to say. Winston Churchill always referred to his Homburg hats, his cigar, and cane as his props, which served him extremely well for more than sixty years in British politics. I recall being counselled against wearing my trademark bow ties some years ago because they “drew attention to me”, which I thought was rather unusual advice to give a politician! (In fact, the real reason I wore bowties, aside from liking them, was the practical one that they are less likely to get in the way, unlike conventional neckties.)     

Mr Waititi has quickly grasped the importance of branding in politics. His cowboy hat and his hei-tiki will become his political trademarks. They have already drawn him to public attention, and he has used them to gain small wins over the system. Although there was already a Speaker’s Ruling from 1999 permitting MPs to wear hats in the Chamber, provided they did not contain advertising material or other slogans, hats have been rarely seen in the chamber during those years.  Mr Waititi was quick to draw attention to that Speaker’s Ruling on his first day in the Chamber, lest anyone challenge him. And now, with the Speaker doing a complete somersault and ruling that henceforth ties shall be optional it really is “game, set and match” to Mr Waititi.

Of course, the whole issue is utterly trivial to the public. It will have no impact on the issues that matter – Covid19, climate change and Labour’s housing crisis. But while the public will see this incident as yet another example of MPs being out of touch with reality, they will at the same take note of Mr Waititi. New Zealanders like nothing more than someone who is “agin the system” and who fights petty rules. Such a person earns one of our highest national compliments – “he’s a bit of a character.”

That is where Mr Waititi has already made his mark. But being a “character” will take him only so far. His props are his tools of the trade – they are not the trade itself. The bigger challenge ahead for Mr Waititi will be use them effectively to promote his wider political message to Maori and Pakeha, to secure his re-election in 2023.    

 

 

The question of whether Medsafe would approve the Pfizer Covid19 vaccine was finally resolved this week. Up until then, the constant and near fever-pitch “will they, won’t they” speculation had been one of the biggest “beat-ups” of recent times. 

There was never any doubt that Medsafe would approve the vaccine – for a couple of reasons. First, the idea that New Zealand regulators would find evidence against approving the vaccine that no other regulators anywhere in the world had found was simply preposterous. And, second, once Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Agency (TGA) approved the vaccine, as had happened a couple of weeks ago, it was really game-over as far as any potentially different decision in New Zealand was concerned. This is because since the Clark government’s failed attempt in the early 2000s to merge Medsafe with the TGA the standard practice on both sides of the Tasman has been to regard approval of a new medicine in either Australia or New Zealand as approval in both countries, to save duplication of effort and resources. 

New Zealand Ministers and officials should have known this full well, which makes their public statements that notwithstanding the worldwide approvals, followed by the TGA’s decision, it would be unwise to prejudge what Medsafe might conclude, look utterly hollow and ludicrous. 

But this needs to be seen in a wider context. Having won the election so decisively last year because of public approval of its handling of the pandemic crisis, the government knows only too well the political benefits to be derived from continuing its close focus on Covid19 related issues. Given the inevitability of Medsafe’s approval of the vaccine, there was absolutely no justifcation for the Prime Minister’s special announcement that Medsafe had reached a favourable decision, let alone the separate detailed statement from the Director-General of Health of how the decision had been arrived at. None of it was news – it would have been more newsworthy had Medsafe not approved the vaccine – but it was just another occasion where the government could play the Covid19 card to good effect. By drawing out an announcement that anyone with any knowledge of these issues knew was always going to be an approval of the vaccine, the government was able to keep the focus on itself and then look like the good guys when it was able to announce as some dramatic breakthrough the only decision its independent regulator could have made, the same one which virtually every other regulator in the world had already made. 

Similarly, with the resumption of the daily 1:00 pm press conferences. There has been nothing said in any of those over the last couple of weeks that could not have been covered just as adequately in a departmental press release. But a factual press release without the accompanying spin would obscure the point that the government really is in full control of the situation. The press conferences are less an exercise in conveying information, than one of showing who is in control. 

One need only look at the continuing number of cases being identified at the border; the mounting questions about how secure and safe the managed isolation and quarantine system is; the growing problems surrounding the handling of cases of New Zealanders either with terminal conditions themselves, or within their families, desperate to come home; and now, the questions about when vaccines will actually be made available to New Zealand, to know that there is much about the ongoing Covid19 situation the government has no control over. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that the government will want to make as much as it can out of those aspects that it does control. Like it or not, it is simply smart politics. 

Meanwhile, as the housing crisis escalates; the inbound tourism sector says it is weeks away from total collapse; and more and more Main Street businesses (and even Wellington’s last major department store) have either shut up shop for good or have announced they are about to do so; the government is stoically silent on any strategies or plans to address these issues which affect the livelihoods of many of its citizens. 

But, true to form, it does know the value of a good diversionary tactic, so its major announcement this week was of a consultation process on the content of the forthcoming New Zealand history syllabus in schools. Whatever one’s view, this is likely to be a controversial public debate, occupying a lot of media space, that might otherwise have been dedicated to other issues. Similarly, too with the follow-up announcement about making it easier for local authorities to establish Maori wards, topped off by the Prime Minister’s announcement of the inaugural Matariki Day public holiday on June 24 2022. Again, the politics of diversion and deflection at their best. This is not at all to say that these issues are unimportant – they are – and we need to show calm reflection and maturity as a nation as we debate them. 

The government will say the timing of all these announcements is based around the forthcoming Waitangi weekend, and there is a convenient truth to that. But it is hard to escape the feeling that they have rolled out now to deflect public attention away from the hardening questions about Covid19. Why, for example, is the border control situation such a mess? Why the uncertainty about when Covid19 vaccines will arrive in New Zealand, let alone when New Zealanders will be vaccinated, given the original assurance we were at the head of the queue? In view of the high level of organisation there has been in other countries to ensure efficient application of the vaccine, is there a similar plan for New Zealand and who is developing it? These questions are regularly glossed over at the daily press conference, but no detailed information is ever provided. 

For most New Zealanders, who approves what vaccine and by what process is secondary to knowing when the vaccine will be available and when they will get it. They would like hard and fast answers to these questions, rather than just another dose of spin.

 

Why is it that New Zealanders go into a state of near panic every time a case of Covid19 is reported in the community, yet for the rest of the time largely ignore the value of contact tracing by scanning QR codes? As someone who almost religiously looks for and uses such codes, I am constantly stunned how few others seem to do so. Whether in cafes or restaurants, shops, or trains, I am invariably the only one scanning when I enter. Indeed, others seem to give almost scornful looks when I line my phone up against the QR code in the doorway. 

Yet, a few weeks ago, when I complained on Twitter about this and suggested that maybe the app itself was part of the problem I unwittingly unleashed a storm. Nearly 90,000 people viewed my post – and about 1,500 responded to me. Most of that was abusive, with cheap jibes like I needed to get up to speed with how mobile phones work – all of which completely overlooked, or far more worryingly failed to even comprehend the point I was making. And all the while, use of the app has continued to decline, despite pleas from the Minister and the Director-General of Health. Only in the wake of the recent Northland incident has it increased, although it has yet to be seen whether this is just a temporary blip. 

Yet the question has to be asked – why does it take a fresh Covid19 scare for people to remember the need for contact tracing? Have they not comprehended from all the local publicity, let alone the international news they see daily, that effective contact tracing is probably the best way of tracking where the virus has gone, and who has been placed at risk? If things run true to form, the current surge in the use of the app will die down again once the peak of the Northland situation passes. Contact tracing along with maintaining personal hygiene through frequent hand washing have been identified from the outset as simple but effective steps people can take to limit the spread of the virus. So why are we not doing it? 

Bluntly, a contact tracing system with such a low uptake as ours is really not all that much better than no system at all. Nor is the temporary surge in use that seems to occur whenever there is a suspected community case all that much use either. After all, contact tracing is about tracing where people have been and whom they have been in contact with over preceding days. While it is good that a potential outbreak might spur people to use the app more, particularly if that use is sustained, it is frankly a bit late when it comes to identifying what has happened, and where the virus may have gone. 

It is also good that the Minister of Health and the Director-General continue to push for greater use of the scanning app but the level of uptake so far strongly suggests that their worthy pleas are not enough. Maybe it is time to consider whether there are more viable alternatives. 

The Taiwanese case bears consideration. Taiwan has developed a “digital fence”. Rather than mandatorily quarantine people entering the country, or suspected of having the virus, their “digital fence,” relies on home-based quarantine, with location monitoring via cellular signals from a person’s cell phone. Venturing too far from homes triggers an alert system, which sends calls and messages to the person to ascertain their whereabouts. There is an instant fine of $1million New Taiwan Dollars (around NZ$46,000) for quarantine breaches. The system has now been expanded to include such things as digital maps of mask availability at nearby stores. 

Although our Prime Minister praised the “digital fence” when it was first launched the government here has no shown inclination to follow the Taiwanese example, for fear that the public would regard phone-based tracking as too obtrusive. That is a fair point which needs to be considered. However, Taiwan would argue that their system is actually less intrusive than mandatory isolation and quarantine and the threat of community lockdowns from time to time. 

Given Taiwan’s lower case and death rate than other countries, including New Zealand (even though their population is more than five times ours, and densely concentrated on an island no bigger than Otago) their system has clearly worked. New Zealand’s move late last year to a Bluetooth based system is a partial step in Taiwan’s direction, but it still relies on people scanning the QR codes in the first instance. 

Whether a system more akin to Taiwan’s is the answer for New Zealand remains to be seen. But it is clear that we will continue to fail to get the maximum benefit from our contact tracing system if usage rates remain at or around their current levels. As a community we need to dramatically lift our game and take contact tracing seriously. Instead of just talking about the “team of five million” we should start to act like it. It is in all our interests to do so.

 

 

 

Joe Biden is now the President of the United States and many people across America and throughout the world will consequently be breathing more easily. But while the erratic, unpredictable and irresponsible years of the Trump Presidency may be over, the damage they inflicted internally and to America's prestige, credibility and influence will not be quickly overcome. 

President Biden has nevertheless made a promising start. His early decisions that America will rejoin the Paris Accord on climate change and the World Health Organisation and stop the ban on Muslim immigration will be widely welcomed and seen as an early sign of the new Administration's commitment and decency. Positive as they are, they are however but a small step on America's long road to domestic and international recovery. 

The task ahead is enormous. During his term President Trump had managed to alienate virtually all America's allies, from the North and South of the American continents, throughout Europe and across Asia. The new President and his Secretary of State in particular face a massive task rebuilding these fractured, often long-standing relationships. It will take time, tact and patience. 

At the domestic level, the situation is no less daunting for the new President and Vice President. The deep divisions and bitterness latent in American society were raised to unprecedented levels by President Trump. Last week's attempted coup and insurrection in Washington DC was the ultimate outrage showing what a flashpoint the tinderbox that now holds American democracy has become. 

President Biden's calmer demeanour will be an asset as he sets about the task of trying to bring America together again. But over time his approach will need to be more than just soothing words. Important as they and his non-confrontational approach will be in initially lowering the presently unacceptably high social and political temperatures, they will need to be followed by demonstrable actions to give effect to what the President is seeking. 

President Biden has traditionally positioned himself as the "great unifier" and he will need to apply all those skills to his Administration's dealings with the Legislative Branch of government - the Senate and the House of Representatives, as well as to the country as a whole. 

It may be a little easier in the Senate where the Democrats will rely on the casting vote of the Vice President to progress their agenda, although that is still extremely fragile. However, the House could prove more problematic. While the Democrats have an outright majority there, it is not large. Moreover, the next election for the House is just two years away, and Presidents frequently suffer an electoral backlash then. 

The new Administration will be keen to minimise that risk, so the relationship between the White House and House Speaker will need to be close and tight. This may be a source of tension as Nancy Pelosi, while a very effective politician, can also be a polarising figure. During the Trump Administration she was frequently more akin to the leader of the opposition as we would know it, but now needs to play a more constructive role to help the President pursue his agenda. Their working relationship is likely to be critical to the new Administration’s success or failure. 

At the same time, some Democrat members of the House may become frustrated that President Biden’s agenda is unlikely to be as radical as they would wish to pursue now they control all three branches of government. Mollifying these frustrations will require much skilful negotiation between the White House and the House leadership to ensure that the Democrats can remain a unified force and make progress on the President’s objectives. 

A critical early issue for the new Administration will be how it handles the latest impeachment of President Trump. So far, this matter has been pursued by the House following the storming of the Capitol and President Trump’s egregious apparent inciting of the protestors. Even though the grounds of impeachment this time look far more substantial than the earlier effort a few months ago, there is no guarantee it will succeed, as it will require just over a third of Republican Senators joining every Democrat Senator in voting for conviction for it to succeed. Moreover, in pursuing it the Democrats need to be careful that it does not look more like an act of political vengeance against a defeated President than the holding to account of President who incited an insurrection. 

At the same time President Biden will be well aware that if the Senate impeachment attempt fails, President Trump is certain to claim his acquittal as not just a victory on the particular charges, but also a vindication of all his claims that the election was stolen from him by vote-rigging Democrats. It could give an early breath of life to any nascent new political vehicle he is considering. Of course, four years is a long time, and right now the proposition that President Trump is capable of winning the next Presidential election in 2024 would be dismissed as outrageously preposterous. But stranger things have happened. After all, no-one took the idea of his winning the 2016 election seriously until just shortly before it happened. 

The Democrats control the agenda of when the impeachment will proceed. It would be no surprise if President Biden’s legendary ability when a Senator and as Vice President to work “across the aisle” comes into play here. There will be many Republicans keen to see the back of President Trump for good, who might be persuadable to support an impeachment conviction, in return for some other policy trade-offs. At the same time, there are still many Republicans in the Senate and the House too scared of, or in the thrall of Mr Trump to risk opposing him lest they incur his wrath when they next come up for re-election. 

As far as New Zealand is concerned, there are unlikely to be too many changes in our relationship with the United States under the new Administration. One possible area relates to China. As its relationship with China deteriorated, the Trump Administration was placing considerable pressure on allies and friends to make a choice between the two, something that would have become increasingly difficult for New Zealand, giving our mounting reliance on China for trade and economic reasons. President Biden is likely to take a far more diplomatic approach, so relieving a little of the pressure on New Zealand in this regard. 

Of course, the new President’s immediate focus will be on curbing the spread of the Covid19 virus, which has already killed over 400,000 Americans. With the pandemic still rife in America, and our borders closed for the foreseeable future, the chances of the President sitting down in the White House with our Prime Minister any time soon to discuss these matters look remote.    

 

 

Speaking as President-elect immediately after the United States Electoral College’s votes had confirmed him as the next President of the United States, Joe Biden observed that “politicians don’t take power – people grant power to them.”

Those words are both timely and applicable far beyond the United States and are relevant here as a new Parliament gets down to it business. Although we also had a hotly contested election, producing a decisive result, once it was over and the result declared, that was it. Unlike in the United States there was no ongoing dispute about its legitimacy or integrity. For that reason, Mr Biden’s comments sprung primarily from the need to try and heal deepening divisions and tensions within the United States, but they also have value in a wider context.

Their relevance goes to the nature of political leadership in democratic societies. At its heart, it is, in theory at least, essentially a partnership or compact between the leaders and the led. Political authority is ceded to the leaders on the basis they will carry out certain specified tasks on behalf of the people. In return, politicians are expected to acknowledge that they govern at the behest of the people, and not seek to pursue policies outside this mandate. This implicit partnership is especially important in a small and intimate democracy like ours where there are few formal checks and balances on the exercise of political power.

Of course, it does not always work as smoothly as this. There are always going to be accusations of a particular government or group of Ministers usurping too much power unto themselves or ignoring the will of the people. But that is generally the stuff of political debate, rather than a breach of the informal compact between leaders and the people. The next election is usually a pretty a good sanction on governments going too far.

Nevertheless, there are some governments that do come to display more totalitarian tendencies than others, and some politicians, particularly during long spells in government, who come to believe more in themselves and so lose touch with public reality, or develop an unreasonable sense of entitlement, or both. The current controversy surrounding the Speaker of the House is arguably an example of the latter point.

The first two weeks of the new 53^rd Parliament have shown it is likely to be one like no other in our recent history. While that is exciting, it is not without its risks. The country’s first single party majority government in a generation will need to be ever mindful that it is not a law unto itself, despite its large majority, so must pay due heed to the consideration and role of Parliament when it comes to decision making. The Opposition and the smaller parties must have their rights protected to comment on the issues of the day and to participate fully in the debates and select committee meetings, even if their paucity of numbers means they are unlikely to be able to influence very much.

In that regard, the approach being taken by the two new Maori Party MPs is encouraging. With a clear eye to the constituents they are representing, they have already sought to establish their relevance by not so gently pricking many of Parliament’s treasured balloons. While their small numbers mean they will not win their battles, their approach is nonetheless refreshing and will ensure them a credibility and grudging respect within the system that they would have otherwise struggled to find.

By now, many of our political leaders will be returning to their home areas to be with family and friends – to be normal for a few weeks. For the new MPs, the buzz and excitement of their election and first few weeks in the seat of power will still be fresh. There are probably some of them who will feel a little frustrated that Parliament has wound up for the year so soon after it started, and just as they were beginning to get used to it. However, for others, Ministers especially, for whom 2020 has been unusually long, unpredictable and stressful, the break will not come soon enough.

For all of them, the coming holiday period provides an opportunity to relax and recharge the batteries to get ready for 2021. As they do so, all of them, no matter how senior or junior they may be, should reflect on the wisdom of the Biden dictum and make a commitment as one of their New Year’s resolutions to follow it in their work next year.

As one who has experienced and understood over many years the pressures of political and public life, I appreciate that the vast majority – although by no means all – of our politicians of whatever political persuasion are decent people trying to do their best as they see it for our country. My wish to all of them is that they are able to enjoy a peaceful and happy Christmas and New Year with their families and those dear to them, so that they return to duty next year determined to use responsibly and effectively the power the people have granted them.

On that note, Dunne Speaks takes its leave for 2020. My best wishes to everyone for the coming Festive Season and for a better year in 2021.