Govt learns to take a pragmatism pill and Ardern up
Conscience: ‘Knock knock. Whose there? Principles. Principles? Who? What? Eh? What you talking about?
Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister: ‘Argh let me help. Mmmm yes, principles. Well, sure of course we’re principled but we’re in power now and there’s only so much we can achieve, reality is biting, it’s best we pursue a pragmatic approach in our search for solutions.’
And how very wise. The above conversation is of course fictional, but it’s not entirely untrue.
Labour is quickly learning that one of their own, former MP and Minister Steve Maharey, was spot on when he stumbled into telling Parliament the truth in 2000: ‘That’s the kind of thing you say in opposition, not in Government.’
How right he remains today. Labour must be pragmatic if it wants to survive. It must be pragmatic if it wants to achieve something. And it is being pragmatic and it is winning on a number of fronts.
They’ve banned foreign buyers
NZ First's coalition talks with Bill English were an utter fraud. National was used as leverage. And spat out.
in our housing market. National said it was too hard – Labour did it in its sleep.
26 weeks paid parental leave was apparently so unaffordable National used the rare fiscal veto to avoid defeat to Labour last year. Yet with ease Labour rushed 26 weeks through urgency this week.
So pragmatic is Labour now that it even poses for the cameras in Parliament, crowded desperately around National MPs as National counts whether Labour has the numbers to appoint a Speaker and run the place. Chaos yes, but that’ll be easily and quickly forgotten too. Policy wins always trump beltway antics.
Being in Government doesn’t actually allow you much room to protest anymore. And already we’re seeing signs of the newfound pragmatism. Ardern could have taken on Aussie PM Malcolm Turnbull over the plight of Manus Island refugees and the fight Kiwis face in Aussie for some of the most basic entitlements.
She chose not to. Why try to beat up our closest mate on our first outing. It would be all loss for little gained. Pragmatic. Smart. Sensible.
The wins will come later, establishing good relationships matters more right now.
Then there’s the freshly signed TPP. That’s the evil trade pact which steals our sovereignty, if the protesters are to be believed. Protesters like, ummm, four of the current Cabinet, including Trade Minister David Parker, who marched publicly against the TPP in 2015. Yet Parker has just spent the past few days in Vietnam renegotiating the trade pact, looking for concessions. Pragmatic.
Labour is quickly finding that wearing the big boy pants means backing away at times but always being aware of the bright, red flashing neon sign that screams: ‘Reality!’ It’s called being in power and being responsible.
Helen Clark became extraordinarily centrist and pragmatic. John Key as well. In fact, Key doubled down, became a thief in broad daylight, pragmatically and shamelessly stealing Clark’s pragmatism and taking a few of her policies along the way.
The Working for Families payments that were ‘communism by stealth’ became a staple in National’s centrist diet.
Sure they fiddled with a few numbers but families didn’t suffer. So pragmatic was National in the end, they even put up benefits by $20 a week. Labour never did that.
There’s plenty of history that points to necessary pragmatism.
Labour did nothing to stop the runaway property market in 2003-07; they called that wealth creation back then. And record hectares of land was converted into dairy farms. Pragmatism then – part of the fix-it programme now.
But in the past two weeks this new Government has learned some harsh lessons and scored some easy victories.
Yes they’re young and inexperienced and learning on the job – it’s quite refreshing. Getting stuff wrong is human. Their judgement day will come later.
Winston Peters is worth a column on his own. That’ll come. But by taking legal action against a host of National MPs on September 22, the day before the election, surely that’s all the proof we need to show the coalition talks with Bill English were an utter fraud. National was used as leverage. And spat out.
No wonder Peters sweated over this decision. It wasn’t a decision. He’d already made it.
His legal action and personal vendetta came before what was in the best interests of the country.
But I digress. Back to pragmatism. So Labour has promised 100,000 affordable homes, 100 million trees, tens of thousands of new jobs. Oh, and a surplus, and salary increases, superannuation at 65, more operations, pay equity for women, trains to everywhere. The list goes on.
Pragmatism and hence reality will get in the way of some of that. It’s also called compromise; we all strive for the best and often settle for what we can achieve – that’s life.
Labour’s reality check is coming. But ambition is good – after all, politics is the art of the possible. It’s not about what’s right or what’s best, it’s about what you can get done.