New Zealand’s kingmaker party defers government decision until Oct 7

WELLINGTON: The leader of the New Zealand First Party, which emerged as the kingmaker after an inconclusive weekend election, said yesterday he would not make a decision on who should form government until after the Oct 7 release of a final count.

Still to be counted are ‘special votes’, ballots from overseas voters and those who vote outside their home constituencies, which account for 15 per cent of total votes.

While they are not expected to change the result, with the ruling National Party ahead with a comfortable 10 point lead, they could add seats to the possible Labour- Green coalition, making New Zealand First more comfortable to go with them, despite the fact they did not win the largest number of seats.

“I can’t with any intelligence — and nor can my colleagues — tell you what we’re going to do until we’ve seen all the facts,” Winston Peters, the outspoken leader of the New Zealand First Party, told a press conference in Wellington.

Peters, who spoke after meeting with his caucus, gave little away on what his party will demand in return for supporting Prime Minister Bill English or opposition Labour leader Ardern to form a coalition government.

Negotiations are expected to take weeks, with those who have worked with Peters saying the final decision will be his.

“Nobody knows what Winston Peters or NZ First will do, at this stage they don’t know what they’ll do,” Tau Henare, a former lawmaker for both NZ First and National, tweeted yesterday.

‘ But when Winston finds out, they’ll know.’

The 72-year- old Peters, a colourful populist and former foreign minister, has served in both National and Labour governments in the past.

The National Party secured 58 seats, ahead of the 52 won by the Green Party and Labour in Saturday’s election, leaving both still in need of NZ First’s nine seats to reach the tally of 61 required to form a government.

Both parties have indicated in recent days that they are willing to offer the carrot of the deputy leadership to Peters. — Reuters

An aerial view of the buliding of the Career and Entrepreneurship Comprehensive Service Base of University Graduates in Zhengzhou in China’s central Henan province. — AFP photo