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As many of us on The BFD are aware, days before the election, The Australian newspaper took aim at Jacinda with their foreign editor saying she was a “poor Prime Minister” and undeserving of her widespread acclaim. Most of us here would agree. But shock, horror; post election, our cousins have had another crack. Or one has. How dare he! To have a go at “Saint Jacinda” when millions of her own baa baas have just returned her in a landslide is nothing short of heresy.
The person in question is one Gideon Rozner of the conservative, free-market think-tank The Institute of Public Affairs. He described Ardern as “incompetent” and said she posed a “danger across the ditch”. Evidently, this hasn’t gone down well with Jacinda’s woolly friends in Australia. “Jacinda Ardern is perhaps the worst person to lead New Zealand through this period of economic turbulence,” Rozner wrote, deigning to describe her response to disasters as “admirable” but labelling her implementation of policy as “hopeless”. Many of his countrymen were quick to describe his comments as “ridiculous”. Others blamed the newspaper itself.
Rozner must have been reading Kiwiblog because for the last few weeks David Farrar has set out, under various headings using figures and graphs, to show just how true that statement is. There is ample evidence there that what Rozner says is indisputably correct. When it comes to implementing policy, Ardern is utterly hopeless. I think even if she knew how to do it, it would not be her top priority unless of course, it fitted with her ideology. Her priority is with the part of her position which brings the fame and adulation.
Those who are critical of both Rozner and Greg Sheridan of The Australian are simply ignorant or hiding from the truth. The fact is that Jacinda did fail to implement policy which in turn meant she couldn’t keep her promises. In important policy areas there is ample evidence she is a complete failure. On economic matters she is completely out of her depth. Her fan club, who are about as clued up as she is, take umbrage when anything negative is said about her. And believe me, there’s plenty to say.
These people, and those who voted for Labour for the first time at the weekend, need to use whatever grey matter God gave them and get back to reality. You can give all the hugs and kisses you want and lock a country down as much as you like but that doesn’t put food on the tables of those who need it most and it doesn’t solve homelessness and does nothing to grow the economy, which is simply the point Rozner and Sheridan are making.
Their point will probably be proven more markedly over the next three years as their economy, which is already in better shape than ours, goes steaming ahead. The next thing to look out for will be trans Tasman travellers all looking for a better life across the ditch. This always happens under a Labour government. At this point the JA fan club will start diminishing in numbers as people realise they can’t exist on hugs and kisses.
At the end of the day, those who have ambition will go where the money is to enable them to get on and achieve. If Ardern is only offering more kindness and fluff without any substance, her popularity will wane as sure as night follows day. Even now, there is dissatisfaction being expressed amongst her core voters. Cover shoots and wheeling out Neve won’t cut it for another three years.
At the point the worm turns National need to be ready to pounce.
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