Labour, Greens join forces to bring down government

Metiria Turei
Metiria Turei
The Green and Labour Parties will be presenting a united front from today in a campaign to change the government next year, Green co-leader Metiria Turei says.

The two parties signed a memorandum of understanding today to work co-operatively to change the government in next year's election.

Mrs Turei, from Dunedin, told the Otago Daily Times the two parties would deal with each other in good faith, including Parliamentary Bills and during question time in the house.

They would investigate joint policies and joint campaigning. Also, the two parties would combine to work in the 2016 local government elections, she said.

It was the first time the Greens and Labour had signed an agreement mid-term and was a natural consequence of fellow Green co-leader James Shaw, Mrs Turei, Labour leader Andrew Little and deputy leader Annette King working together on issues in the last 18 months.

"New Zealanders who want a better future now have crystal clear clarity about what they are getting with their vote: we are a vote for change.''

When Labour and the Greens had actively cooperated and campaigned together, New Zealanders did perceive the parties as a credible alternative to National, she said.

However, each party would retain their own identity while working with a "no surprises'' agreement.

Winston Peters refused to say this afternoon whether the Labour-Greens MoU would mean New Zealand First could not go into Government with the two parties.

He would not directly answer questions about whether he could work with the Greens.

Mr Peters said that MoUs "had never been the mantra of New Zealand First''.

"We do not like jack-ups or rigged arrangements behind the peoples' back. We'll go into the election just ourselves and our policies seeking to change how this country is governed.''

Labour rejected an approach by the Greens to work together in 2014 - a decision which former Labour leader David Cunliffe later said was a mistake.

Labour leader Andrew Little said that if the Labour-Greens coalition came into power, Labour's finance spokesman Grant Robertson would be finance minister. No other portfolios had been discussed.

National Party campaign manager Steven Joyce said the two parties' MoU appeared to have a number of "weasel words" and out-clauses.

"Labour couldn't quite say whether they'd prefer the Greens over Winston Peters or Winston Peters over the Greens," he said.

"So that's where is started to sound like an episode of The Bachelor to me - they couldn't quite make up their mind."

Mr Joyce said the joint partnership was unlikely to affect National's campaign strategy.

It would allow National to re-use last election's TV advertisement, he said, which showed Labour and Greens in a boat going nowhere, he said.

- additional reporting from NZME 

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