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The National Party has suffered one of the heaviest defeats in its history. This defeat was partly, though not entirely, of its own making. It is obvious that there is a need for National to be a far more disciplined unit. Leaks must stop, blunders must be avoided and there must be more emphasis on a cohesive campaign strategy to avoid any embarrassing moments. This is a time for National to rebuild, which means it is a time when the party can relook at all its policies in order to set the platform it wants to campaign on in 2023.
A good place to start is with the founding principles which many feel the Party has moved too far away from. As Sid Holland announced in 1936 these were –
“To promote good citizenship and good reliance; to combat communism and socialism; to maintain freedom of contract; to encourage private enterprise; to safeguard individual rights and the privilege of ownership; to oppose interference by the State in business, and State control of industry.
This is the premise on which all National Party policies should be based. The world has obviously changed since 1936 but that doesn’t mean the same principles can’t be applied. It is necessary for this to happen, as then the differences between National and Labour will become much starker, thus eliminating the Labour lite tag. National must present itself as a different, viable and appealing option to the Government. The trick is of course to be able to do this in such a way that you manage to capture and hold the middle ground and the swing voters.
National in rebuilding, apart from its policies, needs to get out and reconnect with the public. It needs a continuous community presence at local events and also needs to hold public meetings. The many good policies National had at the election, that were ignored by the public, need to be given constant public airings. Local electorate members need to be involved which will also help to build back enthusiasm at a local level. The whole party machine needs to be ready to move at the appropriate time. When the economy, and as a result, people’s personal circumstances, start to deteriorate there will be a swing back and National need to be ready to capitalise on that.
On a purely Parliamentary level I think the worst thing the party could do is replace Judith. Her combative style is best suited to take on Ardern and as time goes by she will have the equivalent of a ten course degustation to feast upon. Judith will enjoy making a meal out of Ardern who will be throwing up anything but good answers in return. In terms of Deputy Leader I would be seriously looking at Shane Reti.
The National Party has a lot of work to do but if it gets the much needed refocus from Board level down to local electorates it can be done. They don’t necessarily need many new policies but they do need to pay attention to those founding principles and become a party that is perceived to be working in the best interests of all Kiwis.
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