Public Address | Cafe | Legal Beagle: What next for Winston?

Sofie Bribiesca

Wed, 01 Apr 2015 09:51:06 +1300

Well said Tussock,( I think anyway). Interestingly Winston, commenting on Mana said he gave his heads up to Kelvin in Te Tai Tokerau because Hone went with Dotcom. He didn't seem to have any other reason thus suggesting NZFirst can work with Mana and interestingly also , Rueben Taipari Porter…

Ian Dalziel

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 23:16:00 +1300

(dude desperately needs a successor)
..an 'hair apparent' perhaps?

tussock

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 22:05:34 +1300

I don't give a crap about Winston, eh. National just lost a seat and have to play nice with some centrist parties now (authoritarian and reactionary ones, yes, but much less so than National themselves). Which means they can only be as crazy as they were in 2011-2014 rather than…

sean mahoney

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 11:12:53 +1300

yes I am struggling with the idea Winston is a progressive...but maybe I am becoming more radical with old age ...

Lucy Telfar Barnard

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 10:06:17 +1300

My inner purist thinks the Electoral Act should be amended to prohibit an MP standing in a by-election; my inner pragmatist tells me this is unlikely to happen.
I see there's a whole 'nother post on this, so I've moved my response there.

Andrew Geddis

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 10:01:45 +1300

@Rich,

Something like that. It may or may not be a good legal argument, but I don't think s.23 precludes it in the way Graeme suggests.

Rich of Observationz

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 09:34:10 +1300

Because the Electoral Act provides for Peters to become an electorate MP, an MP can't effectively hold two seats (where is that stipulated, standing orders?) and so his list seat is vacant?

Andrew Geddis

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 08:09:25 +1300

It does use the words “Members’ seats become vacant only as provided in Electoral Act 1993”.

True. But if the Speaker/Privileges Committee were to say that Peters being elected as member for Northland has vacated his list seat, it would be by virtue of the Electoral Act ... wouldn't it?…

Andre

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 00:19:50 +1300

Winston is a proto-Muldoonist – this was not a win for the left wing. The fact that in some quarters it is seen as such is a sign of how far right Roger Douglas and 30 years of governments chipping away at workers’ rights have taken us while eroding recognition…

Graeme Edgeler

Tue, 31 Mar 2015 00:08:44 +1300

Note that s.23 doesn't say "the only way a vacancy in the House can occur is through s.55 of the Electoral Act." Rather, it simply rules out one particular way in which a vacancy may have been able to occur – through the expulsion of a member .

It does…

tussock

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 23:56:03 +1300

Can I just say, I'm super happy about all this. Doesn't seem to be another place to drop comment here, so this will do.

0: Minority government, WOOOOOOOOOOOOOT.

1: The centre-left seems to have sorted out getting people seats, re Te Tai Tokerau and Northland reciprocation.

2: Holy shit, National…

Philip Temple

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 16:54:45 +1300

The 2012 Electoral Commission review report is worth looking at – http://www.elections.org.nz/sites/default/files/bulk-upload/documents/Final_Report_2012_Review_of_MMP.pdf
page 41, pars 5.6 to 5.8. This does not in any way resolve the technical argument but does suggest flexibility is favoured rather than working to the tyranny of party proportionality determined at the previous general election.

sean mahoney

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 14:23:28 +1300

yes sorry it wasn't serious advice ...

linger

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 14:10:37 +1300

Surely you jest? NZF would be (justifiably) spanked by the electorate for pulling a stunt like that.

sean mahoney

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 13:09:08 +1300

if he was smart he would resign the northland seat and keep the list seat , then northland could have another by-election and we might get offered personal jet packs and gold plated bridges ....

Alfie

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 10:53:44 +1300

Winston Peters has confirmed that he'll resign from the NZ First list.

Andrew Geddis

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 09:34:31 +1300

The House has no power to make a member’s seat become vacant by expelling the member ... from membership of the House.

But in your scenario, the House would not be "expelling the member". Peters would remain in the House (as MP for Northland). It's just he'd be joined by…

izogi

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 09:04:59 +1300

Before then, we all assume Winston Peters will resign. But Peters is not required to resign, and has said he may not.

I didn't hear it but Stuff seems to be reporting this morning that he said on Morning Report that he'd definitely resign:

The NZ First leader, who convincingly…

Phil Lyth

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 07:42:15 +1300

We agree on one thing: statute law does not cover all bases, and clarity is needed.

My inner purist thinks the Electoral Act should be amended to prohibit an MP standing in a by-election; my inner pragmatist tells me this is unlikely to happen.

Public Address

Mon, 30 Mar 2015 07:42:15 +1300

Discussion from blog post.