Luxon had time to observe how he wanted National to work as he sat in Parliament and watched what went on. Right from the onset of his leadership he stated he wanted to work differently. He emphasised that his MPs were to work in both a civil and a bi-partisan way. He praised the fact National had worked with Labour on some new legislation.
Newsroom conducted an interview with him in December 2021 where his emphasis came out strongly. New Zealanders found out he was laying down the law with his MPs, but he was soon seen as being far too ‘hand-in-glove’ with Labour and therefore not fulfilling the role of an opposition.
One rule could be seen as admirable.
Being on your phone when you’re at a work or social function and meant to be engaging with voters isn’t something Luxon wants to see from any of his caucus.
He’s told them talking at people while looking around the room or playing on your phone isn’t allowed anymore.
Another rule was ludicrous.
“I want to make sure there’s civility in our politics here in New Zealand.
“You just have to look around the Western liberal democracies and see there’s a massive amount of divisiveness that’s taken place.
“Once you set that off, and it’s a course in motion, it’s not constructive for the country,’’ Luxon says.
The next rule is seriously problematic.
He stressed that, while National may have some differences from Labour, he wanted his MPs to work in a bipartisan manner with the corresponding government portfolio holder.
That means working with the Government when the situation allows for it.
“There are moments where we’ll disagree very strongly, and oppose, but where it makes sense, and we can be constructive, we should be open to it.’’
The passing of the Housing Supply Bill in Parliament last week is reflective of that.
It was a bipartisan approach taken by National and Labour under then-leader Judith Collins and saw housing spokesperson and now deputy leader Nicola Willis work with Housing Minister Megan Woods to write legislation.
“We know home ownership is important and we know we have a housing crisis. We know we need to build more houses in a long and enduring way and expand and densify our cities,’’ Luxon says.
“Us stepping up to the plate and working in good faith with the Government is different, but very necessary.… We ended up with a good bill.
“People will criticise us for that, but fundamentally we’re either solving a housing crisis in this country or we’re not,” he said. “To work in a bipartisan way is a good example of what could be possible.”
Asked if he respects the Prime Minister, and indeed likes her, Luxon says, “I do.’
Newsroom
Luxon’s modus operandi that MPs should engage with voters was completely ignored by his MPs during weeks of the 2022 peaceful protest on the grounds of parliament. Shockingly, Luxon did not follow his own advice, nor did any of his MPs. The fact that no MPs from other parties engaged with the protesters, does not excuse National’s failure on this issue.
Instead, we hear Luxon was in touch daily with Mallard and others to see how he could help in this terrible situation. The thousands of Kiwis in the protest were stunned when even National – the alleged opposition – ignored them and turned against them.
National’s tick of approval for the Housing Supply Bill
This ideologically driven virtue-signalling legislation has infuriated many Kiwis. Jamming up to three homes of up to three stories high on one section, perhaps next door to a single-story home and with no requirement of a resource consent, was neither acceptable nor rational. Communities are being ruined by over-housing with little planning for the necessary infrastructure to cope with this growth.
The polls are going down for Luxon and National. This indicates voters are turning away from the party, as they cannot comprehend why an opposition would want to work with a socialist government. They want to see them standing up against Labour’s unpopular and divisive policies. His absurdly soft comment about being civil in politics reeks of Ardern’s repetitive mantra to “be kind”. Her ‘kindness’ wasn’t real and didn’t do her any good.
Being too nice has now become seriously damaging to Luxon’s bid for the top job.
