Williamson goes to ground

Written By: - Date published: 5:59 pm, August 25th, 2008 - 16 comments
Categories: flip-flop - Tags:

From RNZ’s Checkpoint I hear they’ve been after Maurice Williamson all day to clarify what he said on Agenda yesterday (as discussed below). But he’s gone to ground and is not returning calls. Williamson may admire what they are doing in Australia but Gordon Campbell sounds a note of warning:

Interesting that the National Party is seriously regarding the Australian experience with public private partnerships (PPPs) as providing a precedent for using PPPs to fund schools and hospitals in this country. Here’s what the Australian Institute of Project Management had to say in 2005 about the Aussie experience with PPPs :

Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects are promoted as adding value to society. Unfortunately, this high ideal has been lost to short term profit and political expediency to make budgets look artificially good

Fresh embarrassment too for Williamson with this press release from Jim Anderton asking:

What did Maurice really want to say? Embedded formatting left in an email sent out by National to ‘clarify’ its $50-road tolls policy has deepened the mystery. Progressive leader Jim Anderton says the email formatting shows an earlier draft of the statement was heavily edited to remove Mr Williamson’s original intent….

The final three sentences were entirely inserted. Before Mr Williamson’s first draft was tampered with, the statement did not have Mr Williamson expressing contrition for letting his ‘enthusiasm’ go unchecked.

I suspect Labour and it’s allies will be chomping at the bit to raise this embarrassing episode in the House tomorrow, especially as it builds on their criticism of National’s secret agenda/ disunity beneath the surface scenario. Perhaps Williamson doesn’t quite offer the safe hands Mr Key assumed?

16 comments on “Williamson goes to ground ”

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  1. Roby110 1
    25 August 2008 at 7:18 pm

    It’s just another demonstration of the true state of the National party. Smith, Smith, Williamson, English, Brownlie – these are he true Nats. They haven’t changed their spots or their ideals. They run the party and put up Key to be the kind and friendly face of their party so that they could get back into power and do EXACTLY what hey did in the 90’s.
    What’s happening is that they are so used to having their own way and never being questioned. Their point of view is the view that is taken for granted within the party.

    All that’s happened is that they have forgotten themselves and forgotten to censor their utterances for public consumption.

  2. randal 2
    25 August 2008 at 7:57 pm

    uuuuhhhh…maybe his perm frizzed?

  3. Felix 3
    25 August 2008 at 8:12 pm

    Seems like every bit of policy these guys release is accompanied by a correction, a denial, a PR back-pedal and a general screw up.

    I’m almost feeling sorry for them. Do they really think they’re ready to run the frickin country?

  4. Macro 4
    25 August 2008 at 8:35 pm

    No they are NOT ready to run the country – despite having been in opposition for 9 years now, National have twiddled their thumbs and have not developed one credible plank of policy – other than hidden schemes to aid their rich mates. They are not releasing any policy – because they haven’t got any! An A4 of a couple of bullet points is NOT policy. The off the cuff statements from English, Smith, Smith, Williamson, Foss et al are just empty hot air! which in the cold light of day even they are force to admit are completely stupid! There is no policy – but there is a “hidden agenda”. And anyone with a modicum of intelligence knows what that is.

  5. ak 5
    25 August 2008 at 8:45 pm

    Ye gods. The leaks have turned into a torrent.

    And it’s not like the odd gaffe here and there – it’s more like every time a senior Nat opens his mouth he or he provides another nail for the tory coffin – and then highlights the fact by trying to hide it!

    Silly old me, I used to think that the fact that they would have dragged us all into Iraq and the massive policy u-turns was enough to chill the heart of Josephine Public.

    But since then, despite a concerted and admitted campaign of the most brazen venality to hide policy, we have learned mostly by chance of plans to:

    – raise the cost of GP visits,

    – borrow to fund tax cuts,

    – sell Kiwibank,

    – “sort out” Working for Families” (later), and…drum roll….

    – PRIVATISE:
    Private Profiteering by Pilfering Public Assets: ACC, schools, hospitals, welfare, and now, unbelieveably, ROADS.

    Roads!! From the tories! Almost too good to be true.
    The final frontier of free-rollin’ kiwis: a deadly electronic bug inserted into our sacred steel steeds to ensure our wallets are automatically clipped by Maurice and his Big Money mates every time we cut a track, feel the wind in our soul and hit the big out yonder.

    And that clip will be bigger than the tax cut!

    Way to go Maurice – can’t think of a more fitting soul to provide the final nail for this shambolic platform.

  6. Savage 6
    25 August 2008 at 8:55 pm

    I still think they have quite a good chance of winning the election.

  7. Pascal's bookie 7
    25 August 2008 at 9:11 pm

    The final three sentences were entirely inserted.

    This is clearly another dirty Labour trick.
    Email stealing rubbish bin overturnin labourish lackspottling ninjatech bastards!

  8. QoT 8
    25 August 2008 at 9:19 pm

    I just cannot believe no one noticed how TOTALLY OBVIOUS the editing of the email is. COME ON, PEOPLE. Either someone forgot to run things past Crosby/Textor or their reputation is staggeringly overblown.

    Captcha: “tender underwear”. Worrying, guys.

  9. naughtybynature 9
    25 August 2008 at 10:18 pm

    Good ole Jim – another well orchestrated beat-up. You have to admire the man – a dinosaur keeping pace with the modern world.

  10. J Mex 10
    25 August 2008 at 11:32 pm

    This is another embarasment for National. These guys haven’t got their sh%t sorted out yet.

    Shocker.

  11. pinetree 11
    26 August 2008 at 8:11 am

    “I suspect Labour and it?s allies will be chomping at the bit to raise this embarrassing episode in the House tomorrow….”

    ….embarassing, probably, hidden agenda….hells bells, can the Nats seriously be criticised for ‘hiding’ something which is already in the Govt tool-bag..

    ….surely wasn’t that long ago I the words tolling, Waterview and PPP appear in a press release from the Minister’s of Labour and Finance…

    My view, Maurice had his day, loooooong ago….pity Nats haven’t refreshed that arm of the shadow cabinet……

  12. monkey-boy 12
    26 August 2008 at 8:25 am

    Looks to me like the actual ‘secret agenda’ is how to lose the election. They blindsided us! Everyone seemed to think it was a ‘secret agenda’ to win!

    Time to break out the Chardonney?

  13. r0b 13
    26 August 2008 at 9:15 am

    Time to break out the Chardonney?

    Not by a million miles. But interesting to note that even The Herald is starting to question the Nats integrity:
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10528932

    Mr Williamson’s candour was in accord with the logic of his party’s stated policy, Mr English’s correction of him leaves serious doubt of the policy’s integrity. Sometimes caution is not the safest political course. National has merely muddied its water again and given the Government another straw to grab.

  14. vto 14
    26 August 2008 at 9:24 am

    Williamson can go shit on his own head for all I care. Once, years ago my gorgeous now-wife of mine, an almost as gorgeous friend of hers, and myself, were in the lift in that apartment bldg next to the reserve bank going to our pad. Williamson gets in the lift too and proceeds to smarmingly smile and nod hello to the girls only, completely ignoring the male in the lift (moi). This type of lurid behaviour, together with his heinous arrogance when he introduced the new drivers licences, puts him head first down the dunny in my books. He has always been a liability to the nats.

    re the actual topic – bit bloody rough around th edges nats. Sharpen up or suffer.

  15. sweetd 15
    26 August 2008 at 9:47 am

    Careful VTO

    chances if it had been a labour MP in the lift, he would have been eying you up

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