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Steven Joyce - Source: Q+A -
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GUYON ESPINER
Good morning, Mr Joyce, and congratulations on your result last
night.
STEVEN JOYCE - National Campaign Manager
Thanks, Guyon.
GUYON Um, Matt McCarten's right, isn't he, that if the specials reduce National to 59, you've got one seat from United Future, one seat from ACT - that's a one-seat majority. The broader point being how crucial is the Maori Party in all this?
STEVEN Oh, I think the Maori Party, United Future and Act are all crucial. It's pretty obvious. And, uh, in that respect, it's not that much different to last time. In fact, Parliament, Paul said, would look quite similar - it's just the coalition or confidence and supply partners would be a little bit smaller. But the Prime Minister will be determined to seek to work with all three of those parties. There's been a bit of spinning like tops on that table [panel table] over there this morning because the reality is with a 48% party vote, it's a pretty strong endorsement of where the government sits, and we're comfortable we'll be able to build the relationships needed to go ahead with the programme.
GUYON Sure. Well, let's pick up on that programme, because can you actually guarantee that the mixed ownership model, as you like to call it, or the partial privatisation of those five state-owned companies will go ahead?
STEVEN Well, I think the reality is all across the programme we've still got to get everything through the Parliament. That doesn't change. The whole point of the Parliamentary process is it tests the executive of the day. So I think you've got to work your way through all of those things. Obviously we're in a pretty strong position, but each vote happens in the Parliament, and it has to be endorsed. But I think the key point about the mixed ownership model is it's a key part of the programme, but it is not the whole programme by any manner of means. But it is an important part.
GUYON It's a $5 billion to $7 billion part of that, and that connects to the-
STEVEN It is a very important part, and I think people have endorsed it on that basis. If you look at it, about 48% of the voters have said actually, whatever their judgements have been made about the merits or otherwise, the package is an appropriate package for NZ at this time, and that's a pretty strong endorsement.
GUYON Sure. Is it on the table, though, in terms of negotiating with the Maori Party? You conceded that they are a crucial element of the next National-led Government. Are you open to saying, 'Well, we'll put this on hold or we'll alter it in order to gain your support on confidence and supply'?
STEVEN I don't get any sense of that at all, but these discussions will take place, as they always do, between the leader and deputy leader and the two co-leaders of both parties. But I think we're pretty confident about our position in relation to those things, but, as you know, last time the Maori Party sat down with us and we came up with a confidence and supply agreement. They didn't agree with everything that we proposed to do, and they didn't vote for some of it, but they voted for confidence and supply. So that's the sort of relationship we'd be looking to form, but those discussions have to take place.
GUYON Can I put it this way - can you credibly lead a government without the Maori Party being involved as ministers on confidence and supply?
STEVEN Well, I think it all depends on the numbers. As it's been noted, we've currently got 60. We need one further vote to be able to have a majority in the Parliament. The Prime Minister spoke with both United Future and ACT last night and secured that vote, but he's also keen to speak with the Maori Party, but that will be an additional buffer.
GUYON When you look at those two support partners - ACT and United Future - just one seat. They didn't bring anyone with them other than their electorate seats. Does this present a longer-term problem in terms of National having a partner, and does perhaps the partner support for National lie with the Conservatives in the future or another force emerging on the centre right?
STEVEN I think it's too early to say, Guyon. I think we've only have the 2011 election. We've got to be careful not to start doing the 2014 one, you know, day one after the 2011 one. A number of things could occur. You've just given a couple of scenarios. ACT could rebuild itself. Obviously there will be a lot of desire to do that within the ACT Party given what's happened to them in this last election yesterday. All sorts of things. You've mentioned the Conservative Party. I just think it's a bit too early to write those things. You can control what you can control, and in our case it'll be delivering a programme that delivers the economic future that New Zealanders are looking for, and everybody else will work out their position around that.
GUYON I appreciate the details are obviously yet to be worked out, but would you envisage ministerial positions for Peter Dunne and for John Banks?
STEVEN I think it's important that I don't sit here as campaign chair writing the strategy for the negotiations over the next couple of days. But, um, the Prime Minister wants to be inclusive, and he'll work his way through that with Bill English and our team.
GUYON Final question for you: Winston Peters. How much of a problem, or how much more difficult does it make life for a National-led Government having him back in Parliament?
STEVEN I think the question really is how much more difficult does it make it for the Labour Party. I mean, we have the memory of 2002 when we'd got down to a reasonably smallish number in the house, and then there was a jostling of other parties that were on our side of the fence at that stage, including NZ First, as to who was the true Opposition leader. So I suspect you'll see a bit of that over the next three years, and Labour will have to sort out and elbow their way above that again, just as we had to in 2005.
GUYON All right. Better leave it there. Thanks, Steven Joyce, for joining us.
