Bruce Cotterill: New Zealand’s perfect political storm approaches

In Sebastian Junger’s excellent portrayal of the sinking of the fishing boat, the Andrea Gail, the author outlined what he termed “The Perfect Storm”. The phrase was used to describe a unique weather event whereby a high-pressure system, a low-pressure system and a hurricane collided to create a rare and deadly series of events.

A perfect storm of political proportions has gained momentum over the past week. In this case, the unbelievable negligence on the part of one MP, delusions of grandeur on the part of another group of our elected representatives, and a complete accountability failure of a separate coterie of past and present parliamentarians kept the commentators and the observers guessing throughout the week.