It's come to the end of Critic's 2015 year. Therefore, it seems appropriate to look back on what has happened in politics over the last nine or so months.
Party Performances
The National Party: 7/10
National started the year in strides following a ground-breaking victory in 2014, securing them a third term in government. Clever budgeting from John Key and Bill English supressed the opposition’s fiscal credibility and restored some wavering faith in #teamkey. National was also able to obtain a seat for New Zealand on the United Nations Security Council, reflecting John Key’s image as a world leader.
However, the year wasn’t without a few stumbles. National lost the crucial Northland by-election, stalling long-term plans to strip the Resource Management Act. The prime minister was caught pulling a waitress’s ponytail in his spare time. The TPPA has made waves in the media over the past six months, with the government attempting to quiet the public opposition to no avail. And not to mention the soon-to-be, in my opinion, unsuccessful flag change.
Overall, National has had a few stumbles, but whether their wins were enough to keep them up or just John Key’s personality, in the end they have stayed well afloat as the most popular political party in the country.
The Labour Party 6/10
The Labour Party started the year with a new leader and a precarious future. Andrew Little was unexperienced and was left to piece together a party left in tatters by a dismal election defeat in 2014. And while the year has had ups and downs, the reign of Little was far from a failure.
The fixed-term appointment of Annette King as deputy leader was a masterful decision by Little. The party that was becoming infamous for its caucus disunity quickly started to look like a unified force to be reckoned with.
However, polls have been less than favourable for the party throughout the year. This wasn’t helped by the controversial Asian-buyers declaration, based purely on last names from a stolen real estate list. Also, a brief scene of disunity came from deputy Education spokesperson Kelvin Davis when he actively defied Labour’s set-in-stone policy of opposing charter schools. The lack of policy, while not surprising, slightly hinders Labour’s image as a plausible alternative government.
Overall, Labour went from rock-bottom to something that resembles a worthy opposition. Andrew Little’s performance has to be commended. Only time will tell if the party can capitalise on the strides made.
The Green Party: 8.5/10
The Green Party has had a successful year. The election of James Shaw breathed new life into a party that was already operating solidly. The party has announced a range of clever policies and is starting to form a vision for 2017. The Shaw-Turei team has been effective. Now the only thing left to do is to push for stronger relations with Labour in hopes of forming a coalition-in-waiting. However, losing Russel Norman to Greenpeace was not only a loss for the party but also reflected badly on the intent James Shaw had of reforming the party’s activist image. Also worth noting is the pitiful attempt to oppose the RWC legislation that allowed bars to stay open later.
Act: 8/10
Everybody thought David Seymour was a joke when he was elected last year. Based mainly on his election video where he said “hi” 17 times. However, the one-man party has risen to new heights in 2015, becoming the Patrick Gower-appointed “most improved player”. Seymour became leader soon after his win in Epsom and since has regularly put himself on the board with clever, populist legislation and issues. Supporting causes like bars opening late for the RWC and Red Peak has got Seymour’s name out in the public sphere. The only notable failure was when he said “French love the coq”, and even that isn’t really a failure. The next move is for him to stop talking about neo-liberalism and join the National Party.
NZ First: 5/10
Winston Peters won the Northland by-election, which is his greatest achievement in his 30-odd years as an MP. The party continues to be supported by the slightly more cynical and senile members of society, which is working for them. And the last few polls have shown that once again Winston may be the “King-maker” in 2017. The rolling of Tracey Martin wasn’t the best look for the party, but it’s ultimately turned out well.
United Future: 3/10
Peter Dunne has continued his recipe for understated, stable politics, working with National in most of the important areas. He’s certainly a necessary aspect of the right-wing political agenda, if not an exciting one.
Māori Party: 2/10
The Māori Party have “lost their mana”, according to political commentator Bryce Edwards. I agree. They haven’t been successful advocates for Māori water rights and have failed to take firm stands on iwi-Crown discussions in most areas, choosing instead to act as facilitators. Their polling reflects this lack of drive.