Mike Munro, writing in the Weekend Herald, would have us believe Christopher Luxon is going to lose the election for the Nats. He obviously didn’t attend Luxon’s recent meeting in the Northcote electorate. At that meeting Luxon gave a forceful speech and handled the Q&A brilliantly, especially the left’s Simon Wilson. In light of that, deluded Mike Munro obviously needs a dose of reality.
There is little doubt the country will see a National/ACT coalition government led by Christopher Luxon on 14 October. The polls might not be showing it, but it will happen, even without the need for NZ First.
If the last election hadn’t been all about Covid and the rural sector shooting itself in the foot trying to destroy the Greens, we would not have a Labour Government now. Over 400,000 traditionally right-wing voters went left for those two reasons. They will return. Party votes will swing back.
This time around, Covid, while supposedly still affecting thousands every week, is no longer an issue. It should never have been one. There is no doubt the rural voters have learnt their lesson. The ridiculous rules and regulations they have had piled on them is surely a salutary wake-up call for them. Luxon understands this. These instances alone serve to highlight the absolute ignorance of this Government when it comes to matters pertaining to agriculture. It would not be a surprise to see ACT win a sizeable share of the rural vote.
The ignorance shown regarding the farming sector extends also to business, especially small businesses; something Luxon also understands. This lack of understanding in these areas permeates Labour because their MPs have had no exposure to the real market-driven world. They have no idea how to put policies in place that will drive exports and productivity. Instead they have a simplistic view of how to increase their own tax revenue by chasing the ‘rich pricks’. They probably see farmers as exactly those.
Their world view is hopelessly out of touch with reality. It is at variance with what is needed to enhance our prosperity and progress. Luxon knows this and he knows what policies to put in place to turn things around. We have a domestic-centred government spending $2.8 million on a nanny state concept telling us how long we should occupy the shower at any given time. This is supposedly to help save electricity so as we don’t have to burn so much dirty Indonesian coal which we are currently importing in record amounts. This is of course, ironically, adding to our climate emissions.
To offset this debacle the government will throw $300 million at Australian-owned NZ Steel. According to HDPA on Newstalk ZB this will reduce our emissions by one per cent and global emissions by 0.0017 per cent. What abject nonsense when China and India are opening on average two new coal mines a week.
This Government is made up of people that just haven’t got the wherewithal or the real-world understanding to implement policies to improve our conditions domestically or help our businesses internationally. In a game of Snakes and Ladders, we are the snakes. We are getting worse in all OECD statistics including economic ones, despite the fake soothing tones of the Financial Controller. Grant Robertson bangs on about global influences so as to not appear in any way culpable himself.
He told us the Budget would be short on sweeteners and then produced a document that, in terms of spending, looks like it was dreamed up in the Cadbury chocolate factory. Without wishing to appear insulting, here is a man who went to university, then to work in the back offices of Parliament before becoming an MP, and thinks he’s qualified to oversee a first world economy. Well…it was. All he’s achieved is to apply his left-wing ideology to his position and the disastrous results are there for all to see.
Police Minister Ginny Andersen was given the job because she occupied a desk somewhere in the bowels of Police HQ. Again, not wishing to insult, the woman is a complete embarrassment. On Q&A she was a painful watch. Compare her to Mark Mitchell – there is no comparison. Education Minister Jan Tinetti was a teacher. If her performance at Question Time is her yardstick, I’m not sure her class learnt much beyond how to fudge the truth.
Energy Minister Megan Woods, who has some sort of degree in history, sure has the gift of the gab. There’s lots of verbal energy but little action. She needs to walk the talk. As Housing Minister she was competely ineffective, failing to nail her portfolio and getting hammered as a result. Waiting lists for housing are at an all time high. Again, she needs to build on her own performance.
Transport Minister Michael Wood, who I think is angling to be the next leader, is nothing short of a train wreck. He’s expert at coming up with ideas very few want, mainly in the city he’s minister for, and is slow to get on with things people actually do want (with the possible exception of the Herald’s Simon Wilson) such as road improvements. As Immigration Minister he’s forced the cancellation of thousands of his public transport trips by opening the borders to overseas bus drivers at the snail pace of his Te Huia train.
The Health Minister’s handling of her portfolio shows she’s not in great shape either. The health system is sick to the point of needing an injection of new blood but it won’t come from Ayesha Verrall. The Social Welfare Minister, Carmel Sepuloni, seems to think welfare equals a vote for the Labour party, so the more who are on it the better. And the longer they are on it the better. Meanwhile businesses are crying out for staff.
Justice Minister Kiri Allan and Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis appear to think letting their kith and kin out of prison is a good idea or, better still, to encourage the judiciary to stop them going there in the first place. This will achieve their aim of reducing the prison population and the staff needed. They’re probably wondering why the crime statistics are on the up.
The point I’m making is the Labour Government is full of people not up to the job, even if it’s an area they have worked in.
Then you look at the policies – most of which don’t resonate with middle New Zealand. People who are trying to get on and make a success of their lives are averse to being lectured at about how long they shower. Most of this Government’s policies are not in line with their thinking. Those policies that escaped Chippie’s bonfire are bad enough. Adding in those he tells us he’s technically burnt to win the election, but will bring back afterwards to appease his Green and Maori friends, means there is only one way to cast your vote.
As the election draws nearer people will start paying more attention to these things and will wake up to the inevitable nightmare of a Labour win, which will have to include the Greens and the Maori Party: The so aptly named “Coalition of Chaos”. Sir Bob Jones, whom I regard as an astute reader of the political room, says a landslide is on the way. Possibly the worst government in our history will be put on a bonfire of its own making. The embers, courtesy of the Greens according to the One News Kantar poll, will be smoking for sometime to come.
The only reason Luxon and Hipkins are banging on about a tight election is to make sure you get out and vote, hopefully for their party. While not arguing with the strategy, I feel it will resonate more with the right than the left. Another pointer to a Luxon-led National/ACT coalition come 14 October is that “The Coalition of Cuts” Labour refers to is exactly that and electors will home in on the issue of wasteful spending. That will release billions of dollars to spend more effectively to the country’s benefit. Along with the reintroduction of targets, this will ensure the country is headed in the right direction.
Damien Grant, writing in Stuff, lists all Hipkins’s failures, of which there are many. He concludes that while Hipkins is not competent to lead the country, Luxon is. Mike Munro should attend to the mess in his own backyard rather than wasting column inches on the next prime minister.
