DOES anyone feel any happier or confident in Parliament after this week’s government shenanigans? The answer from most voters will probably be a resounding “no”, except perhaps the most fervent supporters of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. A summer thunderstorm clears the air by producing vast amounts of negative ions. A robust discussion or argument does the same, providing those involved stick to the issue and avoid getting personal. The atmosphere around Parliament still feels heavy, sluggish and tainted after the failed leadership coup. Even from a distance it is easy to sense. That lid of gloom hasn’t gone away. What has gone away, or will soon be doing so, is one of National’s and the government’s brightest and most able ministers. While the public is not privy to the details of what goes on in caucus meetings, something happened which very quickly led to the parliamentary downfall of Chris Penk, a junior minister whose popularity on both sides of the House could only be dreamed of by some of his more senior colleagues. Fall guy, stooge, stalking horse – these are some of the descriptors applied to Mr Penk after Mr Luxon unequivocally declared it was he who had launched a leadership challenge and therefore could no longer serve in his Cabinet. Nobody, other than those who plonked themselves behind Mr Luxon at his very short media conference and mustered up the stiffest smiles they could, is particularly satisfied with that simple an explanation. While Mr Penk still had a lot to learn as a Cabinet minister, he is not lacking in aptitude. He is probably one of the smartest National MPs, which makes you wonder why he would launch something like this if it was just for himself rather than the good of others. If Mr Luxon’s elucidation of events is what actually happened, then Mr Penk was perhaps naïve. But maybe it was a case of Mr Penk having the gumption his more experienced colleagues didn’t have to resolve the leadership question, the continuing debacles of Mr Luxon, and the dreadful poll results? Perhaps he hoped that by standing up there would be colleagues standing right behind him also demanding a proper debate? Whatever the reality, Mr Penk makes a far more convenient scapegoat than others who may have been eyeing up the top job, such as Chris Bishop, Erica Stanford, Mark Mitchell, Nicola Willis and Simeon Brown. Meanwhile, the National caucus is a toxic mess and things have got worse rather than better. Perhaps one day those people happy to see Mr Penk hung out to dry while still secretly harbouring their own leadership ambitions will start suffering from the mother of all guilty consciences. Foreshadowing our eclipse MILLIONS of Europeans sizzling in the latest heatwave experienced the awesome sight of a total solar eclipse on Wednesday evening their time. The path of the eclipse crossed Iceland, Portugal and parts of Spain, plunging locals and tourists into absolute darkness for more than two minutes further north and around a minute and a-half in more southern locations. This was purely a northern hemisphere event. It’s estimated another 950 million people across Europe, North Africa and parts of North America saw a partial eclipse. We should never forget the strength of the Sun and what it means for life on our planet. In southern parts of the United Kingdom there were complaints it had not got very dark at all. Yet at its peak 91% of the Sun was blocked by the Moon, meaning only a small fraction of its light was still reaching those places. Of course, we have our very own total solar eclipse to look forward to. On July 22, 2028, Dunedin and a swath of Central Otago will experience several minutes of darkness late in the afternoon as the eclipse passes overhead. Dunedin is already sizing up the tourism opportunities and preparing for an influx of visitors. Interest is high, and special eclipse safety glasses being sold by Tūhura Otago Museum have just about disappeared from the shelves. Museum director, astronomer and eclipse-aficianado Dr Ian Griffin said up to another 30,000 pairs would be ordered. It’s wonderful to see there is already such interest in our own solar eclipse, a reminder of our place in the universe which almost a billion people elsewhere experienced this week.
