Leader will have to save pennies for another go

Paying the bills

Conservative Party leader Colin Craig and his big donors are unfazed about pouring millions into another failed election bid, but Mr Craig says he will have to begin saving if his party is to run again.

Mr Craig, who runs a property management business, has now spent a total of $2.75 million of his personal income on the party but has not returned a seat in two elections.

Most of the $1 million he donated this year went into leaflet drops. Each run of brochures, of which there were four, cost $180,000.

“I have to save for the next election. I’m not broke, I still own the house, I’ve still got a shirt on my back. And I have business interests and a profit-making company but the reality is . . . we have the challenge of working out how we fund this.”

Mr Craig said his personal contributions were crucial as long as the Conservatives did not have any week of the election campaign.

His party had been “tracking perfectly” but were deprived of attention amid the debate about state surveillance, apart from one negative story about Mr Craig’s long-serving press

Spent by Colin Craig on his party.

Put in this year alone. MPs. ‘‘I hate a system which says, ‘You can only have as much radio and TV time as we give you and by the way we’re giving you guys 60 grand and we’re giving Labour and National $1.2m’.’’

Retired Hamilton multi-millionaire Laurence Day, who gave $675,000 to the campaign, said he was still feeling quietly confident.

Asked if the contribution was wasted, Mr Day said: “I put that money aside for a cause that I really believe in . . . we’re giving it a shot . . . we’ve certainly put ourselves seriously on the political map, and going forward people will take us a lot more seriously.” secretary quitting the day before the election. Mr Craig said yesterday the party’s members and big donors were not disillusioned and candidates including his deputy Christine Rankin were vowing to stay on.