Labour Greens plan joint state of the nation

Written By: - Date published: 1:42 pm, January 17th, 2017 - 36 comments
Categories: greens, labour - Tags: ,

Labour and The Greens are planning a joint “state of the nation” event this Sunday. On Stuff:

Labour and the Green Party will jointly lay out their agenda for 2017 at the first ever “state of the nation” event involving both parties.

However there will be no joint policy between the parties at the event, said Labour leader Andrew Little.

The two left-wing parties announced the event on Tuesday, saying Little and Green Party co-leader Metiria Turei would “discuss the social and economic challenges and opportunities facing the country and present a vision of the stable, responsible, alternative that the parties will offer New Zealand”.

Speaking to media in Martinborough where Little and the Labour caucus were having a 3-day retreat, he said the joint event was about “showing we can do things together, even if at the same time we’re competing in the Mt Albert by-election”. …

In an email to supporters Andrew Little wrote:

This election year we’re kicking off our campaign to change the Government with our State of the Nation in Auckland on Sunday 29 January.

For the first time in New Zealand history, we’ll be holding a joint State of the Nation with another political party, the Greens.

In our speeches, we’ll be laying out our priorities for the election campaign and our vision for a stable, responsible alternative. We’ll also be letting you know more on how we’re going to work together to change the Government.

Good to see the effects of the MOU in action!

36 comments on “Labour Greens plan joint state of the nation ”

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  2. The Pink Postman 2
    17 January 2017 at 2:02 pm

    Not before time .We can now educate the voting public on the benefits
    of a co- operative Left-Wing Government . it’s up to us Lefties to make sure we at last have a worth while government with policies for the working people of Aotearoa .

    • Robert 2.1
      18 January 2017 at 6:05 pm

      That’s not what this looks like to me. They are trying to show unity by doing this together, but by not having any joint policies I can’t believe them.

      Let’s say I vote for Labour because I like their social welfare policy; I dislike the Green’s social welfare policy. When I cast my vote I know that any Labour government will be a Red/Green government but I have no idea how the policy I like will change in the backroom negotiations.

      If they want to change the government they need a single block of policies which they can deliver.

      • Sacha 2.1.1
        18 January 2017 at 6:14 pm

        “I have no idea how the policy I like will change in the backroom negotiations”

        That applies to most coalitions under MMP. Who thought charter schools was a likely agreed policy, before voting for Nats or Act?

  3. red-blooded 3
    17 January 2017 at 2:11 pm

    +1

  4. fisiani 4
    17 January 2017 at 2:11 pm

    Both parties will announce that conditions in NZ are terrible and need to change. The public will look around and scoff. Life in NZ is wonderful. Prosperous. Optimistic and confident. Then they will expensively fight for the Mt Albert seat.The opposition numbers will stay the same. A divided opposition pretending to be united.

    • red-blooded 4.1
      17 January 2017 at 2:17 pm

      Get with the times, fisiani – your “divided opposition” claim would have been true, leading up to the last election, but it isn’t now.

      And, BTW, you would be lambasting Labour and the Greens as hypocritical and gutless if they WEREN’T both contesting the Mt Albert seat. Pretty predictable.

    • Cinny 4.2
      17 January 2017 at 2:24 pm

      Hey Fizzy, I’m still waiting for you to provide the evidence to your claims made on comment 5 of the English in England post.

      Or do actual facts get in the way of your agenda?

    • weka 4.3
      17 January 2017 at 2:32 pm

      Both parties will announce that the conditions in NZ are good for some and terrible for others and we need to make the economy fair for all.

      Right wing trolls will turn up on The Standard and pontificate in order to protect their privileges at the expense of others.

    • esoteric pineapples 4.4
      17 January 2017 at 4:45 pm

      There’s a certain truth to fisiani’s comment in that National under John Key “appropriated” all the qualities that make life in New Zealand good. For example, a couple of times I heard a couple of people saying when they were getting their retirement – “thank you John Key” – as if he had personally invented the pension or it was his money. I’ve never heard anyone thank any other Prime Minister for their pension. Likewise, somehow the environment is their doing as well. Mike Hosking has regularly attributed general positive qualities of life in New Zealand to National.

    • Sacha 4.5
      18 January 2017 at 6:26 pm

      “Life in NZ is wonderful. Prosperous. Optimistic and confident.”

      Looks like somebody needs a refresher on the top story of 2016: http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2016/07/aucklands-hidden-homeless.html

  5. Sabine 5
    17 January 2017 at 2:11 pm

    excellent news.

  6. Cinny 6
    17 January 2017 at 2:26 pm

    Awesome news, I hope there will be a live stream of the event

  7. aerobubble 7
    17 January 2017 at 3:15 pm

    Nice. Little says he’ll stand on the list. Good. This opens the way for those who believe Labour has lost the plot. And so, opt to vote Green in the party vote and Labour on the ground in constituencies. This obviously would not change e proportion voting for National, well maybe i they dont like English, but wouls expand (if enough spkit vote) the size of parliament and let in some new blood, air the stagnate small body politic.
    Some may split NZF, and Labour in constituencies. I would never vote for Peters but its the way he gets to be PM, and a lot of Nats get to hold their noses and give National the goidby neolib agenda one finger salute.

    • weka 7.1
      17 January 2017 at 3:21 pm

      Best we push hard the reality that a party vote for NZF risks a 4th term National govt.

      I’m almost cautiously hopeful that Labour are going to throw their lot in with the Greens finally (the timing of this announcement along with Little calling Peters on his bullshit over Pike River). Still a long way to the election but I guess they have to be ready for an early one too.

      • Jenny Kirk 7.1.1
        17 January 2017 at 4:39 pm

        + 100% Weka

      • David C 7.1.2
        17 January 2017 at 8:41 pm

        Weka.

        Little was happy to grandstand on the bodies of the miners for the political points.

        Care to pint out where the Angry One smacks Winston back?

        • weka 7.1.2.1
          17 January 2017 at 8:54 pm

          I didn’t say he smacked Peters back. You can do your own research, it’s been in the media in the last few days.

    • David C 7.2
      17 January 2017 at 8:39 pm

      Speaking about vote splitting.

      The whisper I have been hearing is that Nat voters will vote the Labour candidate in a few marginal electorates (but still party vote blue) to try and ensure Labour gets ZERO list candidates.

      Would be an interesting twist.

  8. Leftie 8
    17 January 2017 at 3:40 pm

    Excellent news, extremely pleased.

  9. alwyn 9
    17 January 2017 at 6:59 pm

    The announcements at the meetings are going to be very interesting, or else the meetings are going to be very short.

    I can just see Andrew standing up and announcing.
    “The Labour/Green Government will not introduce a Capital Gains Tax”.
    This will immediately be followed by Meteria getting up and announcing.
    “The Green/Labour Government will introduce a Capital Gains Tax in the first budget”

    Next we will hear, from Andrew.
    “The Labour/Green Government will ensure that no home owner loses any equity in their house”
    And, from Meteria
    “The Green/Labour Government will ensure that all house prices fall by 50%”

    Then we will have, from Andy
    “The Minister of Finance in the Labour/Green Government will be Grant Robertson”
    Followed immediately by
    “The Minister of Finance in the Green/Labour Government will be James Shaw”

    Either that, which will be incredibly confusing for the audience or they will only talk about the things they agree on and the only thing they will tell us is that
    “We both hate John Key and Bill English”

    • red-blooded 9.1
      17 January 2017 at 7:05 pm

      Guess what, Alwyn – when parties have different policies but work together in coalition, they have to negotiate and compromise. Each party wins some of what it wants and has to give way on some other things. Shock, horror!

      Besides, you’re being overly simplistic and extreme in your claims about these policies – you know it, and so do the rest of us.

      • David C 9.1.1
        18 January 2017 at 9:26 am

        and that is why its going to be fascinating to see a policy announcement of things that the Greens and Labour actually agree on, you know things they have sat down and talked over and come out to the public and say WE agree on this, this and this.

        Anything that isnt in that policy announcement Bill English will easily attack just as alwyn has above.

        • Sacha 9.1.1.1
          18 January 2017 at 6:21 pm

          That argument only works if the public don’t grasp that a ‘Greens/Labour govt’ would mean that the former got more votes than the latter. Mind you, plenty of time for righties to muddy the water before the election.

  10. saveNZ 10
    18 January 2017 at 10:49 am

    Good news.