Is MMP still right for NZ? Reflecting on 30 years of electoral change
Bruce Cotterill is a professional director and adviser to business leaders. He is the author of the book, The Best Leaders Don't Shout, and host of the podcast, Leaders Getting Coffee.
THREE KEY FACTS
The recent antics within a couple of our minor political parties should force us to think about the future of our voting system.
The next general election in 2026 will see the 30th anniversary of the introduction of the MMP electoral voting system.
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NZ Herald
2 days ago
- NZ Herald
Labour's Chris Hipkins questions MMP system, seeks balance in power
'But, I differ a bit from the current Government in the sense that while I respect the important constituencies the smaller parties represent, and I also respect that we compete with them for votes too, I don't think under MMP the smaller parties should call all of the shots. 'I still think the bigger parties have a mandate to reflect the view of a much larger section of the electorate, and so I do think under MMP you need to keep proportionality in mind. 'Yes, there should be some concessions and some trade-offs to the other parties to form a government. But that doesn't mean that you should be doing things that you specifically told the electorate before the election that you weren't going to do. 'The Treaty Principles Bill is a good example. The Regulatory Standards Bill. Some of these things that no one knew they were voting for at the last election, and now they're being inflicted on them. I don't think that's the spirit of MMP or democracy,' he said. Talk of introducing a Capital Gains Tax has been the bugbear of successive governments. In the 2010s, Sir John Key ruled out a CGT while the then-Labour leader Phil Goff made it the centrepiece of his party's tax policy. Fast-forward to Dame Jacinda Ardern ruling out ever implementing one while she was Prime Minister. Enter, Hipkins, who carried the message through the 2023 election. Luxon's then the one to 'rule it out' while he's in rule. When it comes to Election 2026, Hipkins said Labour will have a 'different tax policy' to the one they had at the last election. He stopped short of confirming whether that means the reintroduction of a CGT, but did say he'll announce it by the end of the year. 'Because I think it is important, that is a big policy area. People want to know where they stand. 'In New Zealand, I think we've placed far too much emphasis on buying and selling houses amongst ourselves, pushing up the price so that potentially a whole generation of homeowners is being shut out of the housing market,' he said. Chris Hipkins and Christopher Luxon during a leaders' debate in 2023 and they will already be planning for another battle in 2026. Photo / TVNZ The Labour Party is yet to release any policy announcements for next year's election, but Hipkins said that's for good reason. He wants to make sure they'll be able to deliver on promises made. 'I think one of the valid criticisms of us last time we were in opposition was that we had some really good ideas, but we hadn't worked through the details of exactly how would we do that. Then, when we got into government, we found that some of the things that we'd said we were going to do, very well intentioned, we didn't have a clear plan for how we would do it. 'I think the same thing has happened to this Government. They've made promises with no plan on how they're actually going to do it, and I don't want to be in that position,' he said. In May, Act Party leader and Deputy Prime Minister, David Seymour, referred to Hipkins as 'poo Midas'. It was after NZ First leader Winston Peters 'permanently' ruled out working with Hipkins in any future government coalition. 'This guy's got the opposite of the Midas touch. I think they call him a 'poo Midas',' Seymour said. Hipkins said he's all for a bit of humour in politics, a 'little bit of a sledge' now and then, where it's funny. But the latest jabs from those at the top don't have him laughing. 'They're not very funny, and they're also not very good at it. So, I think they should just stick to actually doing what people ask them to do, you know, New Zealanders wanted them to fix the cost of living crisis,' he said. Listen to the full episode to hear more from Chris Hipkins about the possibility of free dental and whether we should 'tax the rich'. The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the New Zealand Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5am. The podcast is presented by Chelsea Daniels, an Auckland-based journalist with a background in world news and crime/justice reporting who joined NZME in 2016. You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
NZ Herald
21-07-2025
- NZ Herald
Letters: Sell produce of all shapes and sizes and let the consumer choose
Boy racer solution If anyone assumes that boys and girls showing off their cars under darkness against a societal norm is going to stop, they are clearly naive. The solution is to provide a place to congregate under safe controls. Communities need to provide safe places to undertake this activity. Police would still be able to prosecute breaches of law – that must continue. Once society accepts youth behaviour, and minimises risks at the same time, we will ensure tragedies don't happen. John Ford, Taradale. Cost of convenience Nadine Higgins' opinion piece (July 20) on the cost of convenience overlooks some important context. First, PayWave was promoted during the Covid-19 pandemic to reduce transmission – and it still serves that purpose. It's not just about saving a few seconds at the checkout; for many, it helps avoid days or even weeks of illness. That's a public health benefit, not a frivolous convenience. Second, pre-cut vegetables aren't just for the careless or extravagant. For people with limited strength, dexterity, or mobility – due to age, disability, or illness – pre-prepared food can be essential for maintaining independence and eating well. In fact, it's the broader demand from convenience-focused shoppers that makes these products viable for supermarkets to stock. Without that larger market, those who genuinely need them might not have access at all. Sometimes what looks like an unnecessary convenience from one perspective is, in fact, a vital aid from another. Cheryl Simes, Oxford. The rights of children In writing of the call to establish a commissioner to monitor the use of slave labour, Bruce Cotterill in an opinion piece (July 19) posits that we need to worry about our own backyard first. He cites our ranking of 35th in the OECD for the wellbeing of our children. Have we lost sight of the rights of children to a positive and protected early life? Maybe this is because we are constrained by the fear of infringing adult rights and freedoms? It seems incredible that we have produced so many reports (doorstops) over the years and set up so many agencies with so little effect. According to Cotterill, it is time we got serious about the issue of children being murdered and appoint a commissioner who could make a real difference to keeping our children safe. Who would disagree with that? Glennys Adams, Ōneroa. The point of principles Bruce Cotterill, amazingly, manages to take issue with someone in a position to do so addressing the issue of human slavery. He follows it up by Bruce-splaining to Kiwis that it's all very well to hold principles, but you're all a bit naive to think the rest of the world should care about them, grow up. Well, no thanks, Bruce. That's sort of the point of holding principles: you stand on them no matter what. There are those of us who would prefer to stand on our principles in regards to slavery – whether it makes much of a difference or not. Adam Wright, Mt Roskill. Parliamentary process It seems extraordinary in our Parliament, no matter which party is in Opposition, that they have to oppose everything that a government proposes. If more sense were brought to parliamentary business, there would surely be so much legislation about which there could be agreement. This would save hours, if not days, of the expense of having 122 MPs spend excessive hours debating many issues, with then more time available to assist their constituents. Hylton Le Grice, Remuera. Last-gasp miracle The Warriors' last-gasp win over Newcastle on Sunday would have made Houdini go ... 'Holy last-gasp miracle!' Larry Mitchell, Rothesay Bay.
NZ Herald
18-07-2025
- NZ Herald
Why a new slave labour commissioner won't change anything
Of course, this comes hard on the heels of a select subset of our politicians jumping up and down about Israel's mistreatment of people in Gaza and Russia's attacks on Ukraine. I am yet to see either Israel's or Russia's reaction to our protests. Probably because they didn't take notice. Perhaps we could introduce a tariff on products imported from those economies who don't abide by our anti-slavery policies? Of course, no one would take notice of that either. The reason the US can introduce tariffs is because the world cares about what they think. They're the world's biggest customer and they have the biggest defence force. But us? Get real. In a radio interview on Newstalk ZB this week, Belich suggested that if appointed, the new commissioner will not focus his or her efforts on small business. Only those with revenues of over $50 million per annum will be targeted. Excuse me? Firstly, my hazy recollection of New Zealand's issues with slavery and labour exploitation suggests that the problems have been detected in small businesses. One case that I recall involved workers doing domestic and orcharding work. Another higher-profile case involved an Auckland restaurant and migrant workers from India. Yet another saw an investigation into a bowling alley. Let's be clear, these are small businesses with revenues substantially less than $50 million. Secondly, there are plenty of privately owned businesses with perfectly good recruitment and employment records, with no historical examples or even suspicions of anything resembling slavery or labour exploitation, and with turnovers of $50 million or more. And here is a suggestion that, not content with the time wasted in those businesses responding to anti-money laundering requirements, health and safety stupidity, environmental nonsense and climate reporting, we are now going to ask them to bow to the needs of a slavery commissioner! During the radio interview, Belich admitted that she had no idea of how big a problem slavery is in New Zealand. Elsewhere, I noticed that an accompanying statement said the proposed policy was a response to a World Vision initiative urging us to do something. And so the truth comes out. The proposal to appoint an anti-slavery commissioner is yet another sop to an overseas organisation that wants to tell us how to live our lives. Labour's anti-slavery bill misses the mark. writes Bruce Cotterill. Photo / 123rf Deep down, New Zealanders are good people. We don't like the thought of labour exploitation any more than other decent human beings. But we can stand on our principles all day long. It doesn't mean those in lofty positions of power elsewhere will take any notice. But let's not underestimate the cost of taking our arguments to the world. The last time we appointed a commissioner, it was to oversee the cost of groceries. From the moment he was appointed, this writer has been highly sceptical of any benefit at all being delivered to the average New Zealand household as a result. But there he is, sitting in an office within MBIE with a 30-strong staff costing us millions. And this one would be no different. Then there is the fact that we have a very good police force. Is it not their job to sniff out criminal behaviour, including anything to do with labour exploitation or slavery? New Zealand currently criminalises slavery and trafficking under existing legislation. That legislation should be enough for the police to act where necessary. If it's not, let's upgrade the legislation instead of creating another government office. There is something sadly lacking in New Zealand political circles at present. It's called common sense. We seem to be damn keen to jump on board any bandwagon, cause, or worse, gravy train, that pops up without any logical thought about our priorities, potential outcomes, or financial cost. I'd like to suggest that our politicians would be better to focus on the things that can make a difference to our troubled little economy. New Zealand has a whole lot of challenges that I'd like to see our elected representatives focusing on. At the top of that list is this. Stop wasting money. At all levels of government, including local government, we continue to press the case to spend more money. The recent rates increases tell us that Auckland's mayor is one of the few who focuses heavily on costs. And yet it should be the job of every politician to work out what our priorities are, and then tell us how they can do more with less. But no, projects run over time and budgets are blown. Annual forecasts allow for increasingly eyewatering sums of money for what should be relatively simple and straightforward services. When you're broke, you have to focus on the things that really matter. That's where the attention goes. And that's where the funding goes. In government terms, we're not really broke, but we're not exactly flush either. The Greens will tell us that we can borrow more money and still have less debt than other nations. But they're overlooking the fact that our low productivity environment makes borrowing a lot easier than paying it back. And our interest bill is already our fourth biggest cost. We'd be foolish to allow it to go any higher unless that debt supported increased income, greater productivity or both. It's no secret that our problems are plenty. The usual suspects, Health and Education, seem well-funded but poorly resourced. What does that mean? It means there's plenty of money allocated, but not enough of it lands at the coalface. Elsewhere, our infrastructure deficit is massive and we need different thinking to work out what to do about the inadequacies of our power, water and transport infrastructure in particular. Then there are our people who can't look after themselves and those who can't cope in today's society. Not looking after those people properly leads to downstream effects, including increasing burdens from health and crime. Right now, New Zealand is not doing well enough on any of these measures. If we want to aspire to become a country that's respected and listened to internationally, we would do well to remember the following. The country that can do most to help those less advantaged, including victims of war, famine and yes, even slavery, are those countries with strong economies. Before we start telling the rest of the world how to behave, we need to build an economy that can afford to offer help, rather than just cheaply throwing words around telling others how to live their lives. As it turns out, we do have room for a new commissioner. I'd like to think we could appoint a commissioner who would make a real and substantive difference to New Zealand. Firstly a difference to the outcomes for our people but also a difference to our international standing. Fixing this one would give us greater license to tell others how to behave. Currently, that license is weakened because of our own inadequacy. You could call that person the Commissioner for our Greatest Embarrassment. But in reality, they would be a Commissioner for Child Safety. In other words, something or someone that provides a massive focus on preventing us from killing our kids. Can you believe that we have a Ministry for Children, a Social Wellbeing Agency, and ministerial portfolios for Child Poverty, and for the Prevention of Family Violence? I wonder what all that costs. And yet here we are, ranking 35th in the OECD for the wellbeing of our children. In case we've forgotten, on average, one child dies every five weeks in New Zealand at the hands of someone responsible for their care. Of the 127 children murdered between 2007 and 2020, three-quarters were under the age of 5. Let that sink in for a moment. Then tell me that the slave trade in China, Nigeria or India is more important. I'd like to think we have bigger priorities than the opposition's latest bill. Our parents used to say, worry about your own backyard first. That sounds like great advice.
