Clive Bibby: Common Sense, Trust and Vision

Leadership that actually benefits the people of any country is almost always the result of a visionary approach to the problems faced - either those that are self-inflicted by previous governments or ones that are the result of extreme climatic variations over which there is little control.

The Leighton Smith Podcast: Dr Muriel Newman on this year's hugely consequential general election

Leighton Smith and Dr Muriel Newman discuss the ongoing constitutional shift toward iwi influence, co-governance and race-based policies. In this election year, New Zealand is arguably facing its biggest challenge to date.

Click to listen - Audio

Pee Kay: An Open Letter To The Prime Minister

“Prime Minister, the country is running out of time — and you are running out of excuses.”

“Enough. New Zealand cannot survive more soft leadership. “

Barrie Davis: Should I Stay or Should I Go?

If I stay there will be trouble /
If I go it will be double

Prime Minister, “Let’s face it, the country has been sliding downhill for the last 50 years regardless of which party runs Wellington” (Wayne Brown, here). The time has come when a substantial review is required. If you were to do that revision, the people of New Zealand would be more than grateful. You would take the next election easily. Here are the three necessary things to do:

Ryan Bridge: Too early for National leader switcharoos

It's too early to tell whether National should switch leaders.

We've had one poll last night with the left-bloc winning.

If that case were to eventuate, it probably wouldn't eventuate in the way it's being reported.

John MacDonald: Luxon's leadership is more than just a party matter

After hearing Chris Bishop on Newstalk ZB this morning, there are two things about the National Party and its leader that I am in no doubt about.

I am in absolutely no doubt that Christopher Luxon has to stand down before he’s pushed.

Mike's Minute: Luxon quitting would be an epic mistake

Staying the course when things are tough is a skill. I think you either have it or you don’t.

Chris Luxon will not get rolled, but he may quit. That would be a mistake of epic proportions.

What would drive me, if I was him, would be rational thought.

Peter Dunne: It is frequently said that the real test of political leadership comes in a crisis

Dame Jacinda Ardern transformed a hitherto ho-hum Prime Ministership that had been looking decidedly one-term with her response to the Christchurch Mosque attacks in 2019. Her handling of the Covid19 outbreak a year later cemented her reputation as a compassionate and empathetic leader who was good in a crisis.

Bob Edlin: Willis says she has no ambition to be PM

Willis says she has no ambition to be PM – but why not put the question to others with better Mood of the Boardroom rankings?

Herald editor-in-chief Murray Kirkness obviously went fishing for a headline-grabbing declaration from the Minister of Finance that she wants Christopher’s Luxon’s job.

Nicola Willis was too fly for that.

But when you ask questions like those asked by Kirkness, there will be a story – even if it’s a denial.

Matua Kahurangi: Ardern’s legacy in ruins

Today, Stuff published an emotional opinion piece by Sir Ian Taylor, dramatically titled “Dear Jacinda, this is the most difficult letter I have written to you.” While the content of Taylor’s letter may tug on a few heartstrings, the real story was found further down the page, in the poll quietly embedded beneath the article.

The question was simple and direct:

Dr Oliver Hartwich: Money isn’t the RBNZ’s greatest problem: leadership is

Last week, New Zealand’s Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced what she presented as a significant 25 percent cut to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s operating budget.

The headlines were dramatic: the RBNZ would need to tighten its belt and focus on core functions. Yet beneath this public theatre lies a different reality – and a far more consequential matter.

JC: The World Needs a Donald J Trump

Certainly some of Trump’s ideas are ‘out there’. Buying Greenland, making Canada the 51st State and renaming the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. I understand Google Maps will use the Gulf of America name. He also wants to clean out Gaza.

Meanwhile our government has announced people visiting from visa waiver countries can work remotely for their employer for up to nine months under a ‘digital nomads’ scheme and speed limits are being increased on 38 roads. Hardly in the same league is it?

Olivia Pierson: A Hikoi vs A Country

New Zealand’s history is messy, fascinating, and occasionally absurd. The Maoris weren’t exactly sitting around in a utopia when the Europeans turned up. They were busy having a go at each other in tribal warfare and, yes, usually eating the losers.

The British didn’t arrive with halos over their heads either, but they did bring literacy, a legal system and building standards for a life above the dirt. They also brought an uncanny knack for signing treaties which actually meant something substantial when they were signed. The representatives of Queen Victoria would never have signed a treaty in her name without guaranteeing her full sovereignty over that colony. To say otherwise is part of the 'occasionally absurd’ bit.

Suze Wilson: Luxon’s leadership test

Luxon’s leadership test: what would it take to win back unimpressed NZ voters?

Christopher Luxon’s sacking of two struggling cabinet ministers last week was praised by pundits as a sign of decisive – even “brutal” and “ruthless” – leadership. But this week’s 1News-Verian poll suggests the public is far less convinced of his leadership performance.

Based on those poll numbers, the National-led coalition would be out of office if an election were held now. And Luxon’s “preferred prime minister” rating fell further to 23%.

Clive Bibby: The best of the best

At a time when the radical leaders of just about every racial group  in this country are spewing hate of this, that and the next thing, my wife and l were privileged to be part of a function that simply demonstrated why we as a nation, need to focus on the things we have in common rather than the things that drive us apart.

Why do we have to put up with this constant barrage of elitist separatism when our multi-cultured heritage suggests that each one of us has something to contribute towards a common goal?

Suze Wilson: What makes a good political leader – and how can we tell before voting?

For many people, voting is not just a right, it’s an act of civic duty. Even more than that, some voters base their decisions on what they believe best serves society as a whole, not what might personally advantage them.

The trick, of course, is how to exercise that vote in a responsible, informed and considered manner. Understanding the policies of different parties is obviously a key part of that, in which case resources such as Policy.nz and Vote Compass can be helpful.

Suze Wilson: Romantic heroes or ‘one of us’

How we judge political leaders is rarely objective or rational

Given the presidential style of modern politics, the intense media focus on party leaders is unavoidable. But this involves a degree of artifice. New Zealanders don’t vote directly for a prime minister, they vote for their preferred party and electorate candidate.

Technicalities aside, though, party leaders play a key role in shaping their party’s policies and soliciting public support. The upside of the attention they receive, therefore, is that voters get to scrutinise before they “buy”.

John Porter: Empathy Is Not a Quality of Leadership

Empathy is not leadership, but still so many voters believe it is, especially when referring to Jacinda Ardern.

There is a certain demographic that still firmly believe that “Jacinda saved us from Covid.”

We all know well the hand wringing on the ‘pulpit of truth’, the tilt of the head and the empathetic smile and most definitely the “We will continue to be your single source of truth.” “Unless you hear it from us it is not the truth.”

That was Ardern at her very empathetic best. But it wasn’t leadership!

Clive Bibby: Ethnicity and Leadership

Someone has to say it! 

Anyone who has lived and worked with while benefitting from the company of the Maori people, as l have done for over 40 years, should be well qualified to offer a considered opinion regarding the factors limiting Maoridom’s progress towards greater self determination - assuming of course that this path is the one most suited to the tangata whenua who are currently claiming extraordinary rights to citizenship in this country. 

In my humble opinion, the two most obvious “sea anchors” that are limiting progress are “leadership” and the influence of “tribalism” on the ability to work together in a common cause. 

Heather du Plessis-Allan: Who should be next National Party leader?

 

Who should take over the leadership of the National Party?

In the mix right now: Christopher Luxon, Simon Bridges, Mark Mitchell, Chris Bishop, and Shane Reti.

Shane Reti is not an option. He helped Judith Collins commit the murder-suicide on Simon Bridges on Wednesday night so he’s too tainted. 

Chris Bishop is not an option yet. Too many people are still too angry with him for helping in the Muller coup. He’s doing great work so he’ll recover, but it’s too early.