A political announcement last Sunday lets Civis return to a familiar obsession. Civis has before written on the perils of corruption, both the blatant kind and the quieter forms of undue influence and favour-trading. Corruption is corrosive, undermining trust and good government. A small, isolated nation like New Zealand can ill afford anything that lessens its attractiveness and competitiveness, let alone fosters or condones malfeasance. This requires a no-nonsense attitude to uphold honesty and integrity, not just in government and institutions but among citizens too. Otherwise, what was once unacceptable becomes commonplace, and we learn to live with lowered standards. Witness the growing normalisation of venality in the United States. Even as the president’s support falls, remarkable numbers keep shrugging at outrage after outrage. Already, New Zealand's score on the international corruption-perceptions index keeps slipping. We are holding our ranking near the top only because other countries are falling faster. Corruption, nepotism and back-scratching are human tendencies that must be resisted both culturally and through laws and rules. It was encouraging to see the Opportunity Party promote policies on lobbying and political donations. It also proposes an independent anti-corruption body, a strengthened Official Information Act, and an independent unit to stop parties fudging their numbers. Although details will need tweaking, the substance of such reforms must not be diluted. Lobbying rules with proper stand-down periods and transparency should be the minimum. An anti-corruption body with teeth would be welcome. Number fudging, meanwhile, is tricky to control, often being subject to dispute and its own politicisation. Opportunity’s land tax and citizens’ income policies are considered radical. Realistically, they are unlikely to be enacted soon, as leader Qiulae Wong admits. Even if the party holds the balance of power, Labour or National would never go that far. But these ``clean-up politics’’ proposals aren't fringe; they mirror what's already in place in several Western democracies. Of course, opposition parties have a history of calling for lobbying rules, only to let the chance of change fade once in power. Opportunity has the opportunity to play this card to its advantage. Opportunity comes with freshness – some might say naivety and ignorance – and its ``clean-up-politics’’ plans to bolster trust and democracy burnish its image. Might this even be ``top’’ of its requirements to support a coalition government? And might it, operating from the cross benches, remain true to this calling and pursue the policy vigorously? One view is that Labour's chances of leading a government improve greatly if Opportunity crosses the 5% threshold, which looks increasingly likely. Its progressive, left-leaning policies are a much better fit with Labour. While it might work with National, its social liberalism is anathema to New Zealand First, and its stance on matters Māori and Te Tiriti conflicts with Act New Zealand policy. Labour's nightmare would be Opportunity slipping under 5% and its four-point-whatever party vote being ``wasted’’. The ``lanyard-wearing’’ party of policy wonks, as some disparagingly call it, likely draws support from educated liberals frustrated by Labour torpor and Greens’ distractions and left-wing radicalism. The widespread malaise and distrust in Western politics, and the rejection of stale and ineffective government, mostly manifest in the populist right. Opportunity’s rise in the polls is a symptom from another direction. * * * * * When regional councils were set up in 1989, they were based on river catchments, the notable exception being the full Waitaki River. That made sense. The councils replaced the catchment boards, and water underpins environmental management. The rushed Head Start proposals for reorganising local government might work in some parts of New Zealand. Southland, for example, lends itself to consolidation. But the widely mooted coast-inland split for Otago is foolish. Control of the Clutha and the Taieri Rivers and their tributaries surely belongs under one set of rules, governance and administration. civis@odt.co.nz Civis writes the Passing Notes column for the ODT.
