NZ First's Winston Peters gives Labour his support

This is, at most, an occasion for some relief rather than hope. What was significant for me, as someone interested in truth rather than hype is that Winston Peters is the first NZ politician to acknowledge that a severe economic downturn is on its way.

He also said that NZ capitalism for most people is not a friend, but the enemy.

It is clear that the need for change from the neo-liberal model was the primary motivator for his decision to go into an agreement with National and the Greens.

The sad, sad reality is we have a government which will be left holding the can when everything falls apart.

In the meantime the NZ media in its entirety has played an absolutly disgusting role in trying to create a consent for more of the same policies. 

Labour finally retake power after Winston Peters gives Jacinda Ardern his support

Stuff,

19 October, 2017

Jacinda Ardern will become prime minister as the Labour Party retake power after nine years in the cold.

Ardern learnt she's the country's new leader of the country at the same time as the public.

Meanwhile, National leader Bill English also found out he lost the role of prime minister at the same time.

NZ First leader Winston Peters hasn't mentioned the Greens in the coalition deal. He says he negotiated with Labour and it was for them to sort out the Greens agreement.

Peters has been offered the role of deputy prime minister and other portfolios as part of the negotiations with Labour but he wasn't prepared to say what he would accept.

He says Ardern had "exhibited extraordinary talent" on the campaign trail and had taken the party from a "hopeless position to a position where they're in office and government today".

"Our perception was the people of this country did want change and we've responded to that."

Peters said the party had to seriously consider a "modified status quo" or a "change" when making their choice following negotiations.

The portfolios offered to NZ First as part of their negotiations with Labour was a "sizeable list" - some were big and some were small but it would be for Ardern to announce those.

While not everyone in NZ First agreed with going with Labour, Peters says it was a strong enough consensus to go ahead.

His message to National was that it was "extraordinarily disappointing in a way to have to make a decision but it was always inevitable" and he praised the way they'd gone about the negotiation talks.

He said it showed MMP in a "new light" and in a way everyone walked away from talks wishing they'd done it more often.

The Maori seats are seemingly safe as Peters says Labour holds those, while voters were "fast on the hip, they were slow on the voting hip" and didn't vote in large enough numbers to see them go.

There were jubilant cheers, including tears and hugs, from the Labour caucus room where MPs have gathered to hear Peters' decision.

Peters isn't answering any questions about whether he's sure the Greens will support the coalition.

He maintains he's never said a bad word "privately or publicly" about Greens leader James Shaw.

Peters says this coalition is between NZ First and Labour and he hasn't seen any agreements Labour have made with the Greens.

The decision comes 26 days after the election and after 11 days of NZ First's formal negotiations with National and Labour.

Both Ardern and Peters were determined to hold off negotiations until the special votes - 15 per cent of the vote - had been counted on October 7.

That proved fruitful for Labour and the Greens who picked up a seat each and put them in the game to negotiate with NZ First.

On election night National won 58 seats but that dropped back to 56 after specials were counted while the Labour-Greens bloc rose from a combined total of 61 seats - the governing threshold - to 63 seats.

In terms of the total party vote percentage - National received 44.4 per cent while the Labour and Greens block gained 43.2 per cent of the vote.

Those numbers closed the gap significantly between the two options for NZ First to govern with.