Courage, Honour and Integrity Required

Toxic Mr Peters

A recent column by Damien Grant put a finger upon a poisonous boil suppurating upon New Zealand's body politic.  That boil is Winston Peters.  Grant calls for the leader of the National Party, Simon Bridges to finish Peters' political career once and for all.

Firstly, some history on Peters:

The New Zealand parliament first sat in 1854. Winston Peters became an MP via a court case in 1979.  His malign spirit has been present for a quarter of our Parliaments' 165 years and he was pivotal in the formation of three governments, in 1996, 2005 and 2017.  For too long this man has held the country hostage to his incomparable ego and threatens to, once again, hold the balance of power after next year's election. . . .

In his forty years in office or on its fringes Winston can claim three achievements. The Super Gold Card, where taxpayers' money is re-directed to wealthy retirees. The pointless Wine Box inquiry that succeeded in proving that some firms were legally reducing their tax by using the Cook Islands as a tax haven. He also read a nice speech at Gallipoli in 2008.

Everything else has been toxic. He was sacked from cabinet by both Jim Bolger and Jenny Shipley. He stood down as Helen Clark's Foreign Minister over the Owen Glenn debacle. 

If the leader of the National Party, Simon Bridges seeks office on the Treasury Benches via offering a coalition arrangement with NZ First, he will do great damage to his own party.
  Peters is that toxic. 

Bridges has two options. He can dance around the prospect of having to sup with Peters, debasing himself and his party for a chance to be humiliated, tethered and degraded for three miserable years.  Bridges will be required to apologise and excuse the behaviour of people he will have no authority over and probably has contempt and loathing for. Sounds great.

Or he can declare that he'd be happy to simply be the member for Tauranga rather than have a possible premiership cheapened by an association with Peters. At a stroke he makes NZ First irrelevant. Nothing more than a right-wing faction of the Labour Party.

Here is how things would play out, according to Damien Grant.

It is a huge gamble but it also would define Bridges as a leader of courage, honour and integrity. It makes an effective contrast with the incumbent whose power is buttressed by Golriz Ghahraman on her left and Shane Jones on her right.  It would also make him popular. The promise of finally exorcising Peters and his handmaidens from our political process is a powerful campaign promise in itself.

Bridges will then be free to apply the blowtorch to all members of the coalition with gusto and drive home the point to soft conservative voters than a vote for Winston is a vote for Labour.   Bridges is one bad poll away from oblivion and he will not win the keys to Premier House by earnest attention to detail and well written speeches. He needs to slay a dragon. Through the heart. With a wooden stake.

In this quest he will have the backing of a grateful nation. Simon; Finish him!