Lacking leadership

The Labour Party has lurched into another mishap and is  embroiled in a scheme which has brought in foreign students to New Zealand for the election campaign.

Just as Prime Minister Bill English was on the ropes regarding Clutha-Southland MP Todd Barclay’s secret taping of staff, Labour again hands off the duties as the main Opposition party to New Zealand First.

New Zealand voters are looking for leadership from their main political parties. Each has the opportunity to do so, and so far, National and Labour have come up short. This week, too, the Ombudsman slammed the Ministry of Education over Christchurch post-quake school reorganisation and the Budget figure blunders on district health boards funding rumbles on.

Long-time political activist and union organiser Matt McCarten is again at the heart of another stumble for the left.  Mr McCarten has never been an MP but has wielded considerable power over those who have been elected.

After once helping destroy Labour’s election chances by being integral to the New Labour/Alliance parties, Mr McCarten was taken back into the fold to become part of the Labour leader’s office in Parliament. He moved to Auckland, ostensibly to open an office in the city where party votes are absolutely crucial to  winning an election.

Mr McCarten issued a brief statement about handing over control of the Movement for Change initiative to Labour and was not able to be reached for further comment.

Details keep emerging about the scheme which, from documents so far published, has the fingerprints of Labour all over it.

Politik, an online news outlet run by one of New Zealand’s most experienced political journalists, Richard Harman, broke the story on Thursday morning.

The scheme to recruit 85 students to campaign for the party during the election has hit trouble, he wrote. After the publication,  matters quickly deteriorated for Labour.

Leader Andrew Little decried the interns’ living and working conditions.  Promised lectures by Labour’s senior figures, including former prime minister and United Nations official Helen Clark, now appear unlikely.  Labour Party secretary Andrew Kirton has taken over the programme and Mr Little said it was embarrassing for the party.

Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse says it is possible the programme fell foul of visa conditions and labour laws — in other sectors, working in return for board and food is considered "work", and the usual employment conditions have to be met.

Here is why this situation is so important: Labour has consistently railed against bringing in cheap labour when New Zealanders are available to do the work. Labour has criticised National’s so-called hands-off approach to immigration, particularly as migration reaches new highs. Instead of being able to talk concisely about immigration this week, Labour was fixing yet another hole in its  facade.

Labour MPs were active on social media yesterday  berating Mr English for not knowing whether recording of calls of staff members without their knowledge is illegal. No contrition shown by those MPs who must have known about the internships being offered. The Government made a shrewd decision yesterday. Instead of attacking Labour on the interns, it rolled out  government-funded initiatives in Christchurch — all good news stories.

Mr Little announced $100 million capital investment for public transport in Greater Christchurch.  The next day, the Government announced a $50,000 funding grant to investigate the return of a passenger train service between Christchurch and Invercargill and other transport plans.

Voters are not fools. This policy of "I can promise more than you" comes at a cost — credibility. The Government has a huge surplus to spend buying support in Christchurch and Auckland — at the expense of isolating other parts of the country.

Honesty and openness are said to be the best policies to adopt. It is high time politicians stopped, took a breath, and remembered whom they represent.