National remembers it is in Government and can do things
Friday, 8 May 2026
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OPINION: Six months from today we will all be waking up to whatever world the election the night before has created.
But this week it felt like the Government was eager to make sure that even if it is booted out on November 7, it will still have something to show for it.
The Government had felt somewhat bogged down in April.
Christopher Luxon called a confidence vote in himself to put down speculation over his leadership, then faced questioning of a different type when Winston Peters revealed Luxon’s apparent preference for explicitly backing the US invasion of Iran. The India FTA got over the line just ahead of Todd McClay’s trip to the country but the bruises in the coalition seemed very sore. Whenever we weren’t talking about all that, we were talking about the brutal forecasts for how the fuel crisis would hurt the economy.
This week, with Parliament in recess and Luxon in Singapore, there have been no coalition scrapes and no real pushes to Luxon’s leadership. Luxon himself seems to stand taller and become a much more effective leader once he leaves these shores, as my colleague Luke Malpass wrote this week, and Parliament being out of session meant there were no awkward statements from Winston Peters to respond to.
Which isn’t to say it’s been quiet in Wellington ‒ far from it.
Indeed it has felt like one of those weeks where a major party remembers it is in Government and instead of just talking about its issues with New Zealand, it can just take over the agenda by doing things.
Chris Bishop and Simon Watts made the largest announcement this week with a surprise ultimatum to councils: Send us a plan to amalgamate in the next three months. This was a complete shift from the earlier policy of abolishing regional councillors but not actually forcing any kind of reduction in the number of councils. It was a very bold move that has angered some but has also found a lot of mayors keen to move fast ‒ and won Bishop plaudits from the man who last shook up councils in 1989.
Bishop’s move feels like a shaking off of cobwebs, like a party eager to show it has more things done by November 7.
It was followed by a similarly bold move by Paul Goldsmith ‒ abolishing the Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA). Goldsmith has surmised, probably correctly, that few would step in to try and save the BSA, which is an increasingly anachronistic feature of our media environment. The serious news outlets will likely join the self-governing Media Council (which covers The Post and the other far less interesting newspapers and news websites), while the wild west of online newsmakers who were never going to accept BSA jurisdiction will stay unregulated by anything but the courts. In other words, professional journalists will continue to be held to professional standards, while the non-professionals will go on doing what they want.
Goldsmith’s action here could see National pick up some despondent voters who have gone off to one of its coalition partners, but more than that it will give him something to have done in this portfolio once the term is up, something a bit more chunky than getting rid of Sunday advertising restrictions.
Number of the week
$10,088,763 ‒ the amount of money the parties of Government raised last year, well over twice the $4,393,908 managed by the Opposition. As I detail in my piece on the new electoral returns, the numbers showed a huge advantage for parties of the right ‒ and a big reliance by Labour on small donors.
Earlier this week The Post revealed how National was spending that money online this year ‒ mostly, it turns out, on Nicola Willis, not Christopher Luxon.
Kudos of the week
The OECD, for, as always, suggesting a set of sweeping changes to New Zealand’s economy. Someone needs to spark some debate if the Opposition won’t bother.
Fuel crisis bulletin
As the fuel crisis continues, this newsletter will feature a small selection of The Post’s best coverage of the issue.
The big story this week was Christopher Luxon’ s visit to Singapore, discussed above, where he signed a “food for fuel” deal that guarantees neither country will put export controls on fuel going one way or food the other. (It is quite hard to imagine NZ putting export controls on food, but nevertheless.) My colleague Luke Malpass travelled with the prime minister and wrote about both ANZ’s and Singapore’s more sober warnings about just how “still in the woods” we really are.
Closer to home, both the Interislander and Bluebridge upped costs for freight significantly to cover fuel cost hikes.
Quote of the week
'We didn't campaign on local government reform. That doesn't mean the Government can't do it.” Chris Bishop doesn’t mince his words as he discusses his ultimatum for councils to come up with an amalgamation plan or have one forced upon them.
Comings and goings
Felix Desmarais, one of Nicola Willis’ press secs, has been seconded to Louise Upston’s office.
We’ve seen a whole host of new candidates once more: Labour has selected Ashleigh Latimer for Northland, Nick Moody for Selwyn and Brenda McEnroe for East Coast Bays, all seats it is very unlikely to win. More interesting was the party’s selection of Ngāti Toa leader Te Pūoho Kātene for Te Tai Hauāuru, currently held by Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.
Meanwhile, National has selected Lalit Arya for Ōtāhuhu and Candace Kinser for Auckland Central. Ōtāhuhu is a new South Auckland electorate that will probably be a very safe seat for Labour, while Auckland Central is now generally regarded as the domain of Chlöe Swarbrick, even if National won it not so long ago.
ACC’s board has gained three new members for its “turnaround plan” ‒ Richard Keys, Lindsay Wright, and Michael Playford.
The week ahead
Parliament is back for the Budget sitting block. Expect to see a lot of lead-in speeches and announcements as the whole political system revs up for May 28.