MEDIAWATCH: Saluting Penk and why Damien Grant is still a great columnist
Despite the enormous falling out between myself and Free Speech Champion Damien Grant, he’s still a very good columnist and his latest on the decency of Chris Penk is worthy of praise…
Ex-Navy officer Chris Penk can see the iceberg ahead, yet National threw him overboard
Last Wednesday I was presenting to the Construction Industry Council. An excellent organisation, despite their lapse in judgement regarding the calibre of their guest speakers.
As I waited my turn, between checking my phone for the revelation on who would emerge as this week’s Prime Minister and silently checking X, a senior executive from the construction division of MBIE was addressing the conference on upcoming and ongoing reforms.
The 1993 Building Code, you see, has not been properly updated since, well, 1993. It has been that long, this senior executive explained, since the sector had a minister who was sufficiently engaged to endeavour to grapple with the minutiae of building regulations. The name Penk was cited by several participants who had dealings with him, who had presented their case for reform and were impressed.
Meanwhile, our mutual friend, the MP for the electorate formerly known as Helensville, was in the process of ending his political career. What happened?
Stuff
…Penk was unique as a National MP, because he actually got shit done.
He wasn’t just a funny clever bugger, he was remarkably competent, and that is so incredibly rare when it comes to National MPs…
While his colleagues in the building portfolios were failing to progress the updated Resource Management Act, the now former minister for building and construction Penk quietly passed the Building (Overseas Building Products, Standards, and Certification Schemes) Amendment Bill. No one outside the construction sector noticed, but this legislation is one of Luxon’s failing administration’s greatest legislative successes.
If a product has been certified in reputable overseas jurisdictions, it is considered fit for New Zealand. The need to get every widget, plasterboard or insulation foam tested for New Zealand conditions was replaced by a sweeping approval process. Up to 200,000 products previously forbidden to these shores will be available.
This simple measure reduces substantially the cost of construction, undermines the effective monopoly of suppliers of standard products like GIB board, and unlocks a bounty for builders and their customers. It is a simple idea in theory, which would have required discipline, attention to detail and Penk using his skills as a legal beagle to battle with the drafting minions to push through the legislation.
He always went out of his way to be available to the media that was unprecedented for a National MP. I once saw him agree to do a Podcast viewed by only. handful of people because he felt duty bound to be available, no matter what.
The way Penk has been set up to be the sacrificial lamb in a coup that apparently never happened has been made more ridiculous because 1, no one believes National…
…and 2, Luxon himself bewilderingly admitted there actually was a legitimate reason for his MPs to roll him on Mike Hosking yesterday…
Asked if the coup attempt was a reflection on his leadership, Luxon said it was “a reflection on mistakes that I’ve made”.
“I need to be better at communicating where we’re going … what our policies are, the record that we’ve already had in Government. I’ve got to step that up. That’s on me,” he said.
“As a leader, you’ve kind of got to admit, ‘Look, I’m grossly imperfect. Under pressure, we all make mistakes, and when I make them, I should call it out and say so’.”
NZME
…Penk was one of the few stars in the National Party sky, watching him fall on his sword because his colleagues were cowards is a reminder of just how weak and self interested these National Party MPs really are.
POLITICAL HAIKU OF THE DAY:
No one held the knife
No one plotted, no one moved
Yet Penk swings alone
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Get better Martyn – very sorry to learn about your fall – very painful
In theory, in a civilized country where National or ACT would never be allowed near power, recognizing certification of products by “reputable overseas jurisdictions” would be fine. Because they wouldn’t be (abusing) things and recognizing dangerous s**tholes like the US or UK as “reputable”.
As it is, this is a recipe for bringing the Grenfell Tower fire to New Zealand, which seems like a bad idea, while either a) disadvantaging NZ industry or b) cutting standards even for NZ producers.
Grant’s not that crash hot. Some of the other columnists allow comments occasionally – him never.
Penk is still a right wing fundamentalist Christian who allowed nuclear powered ships into our waters, no matter how apparently likeable. If he is so smart why is he covering up for the others, taking the blame and falling in his sword, finishing his political career. And therefore carrying on with a lie. It does seem very odd that this particular politician was the one axed tho, considering his apparent abilities in the job.
Penk was definitely ‘set up’, then hung out to dry! Everybody could see he was the Right’s most promising politician so therein lies the reason he is no longer there! He was a danger to Luxon and any other ‘wannabe PM’ within their ranks so he ‘had to go’! This is a bigger story than the facts show. It happens in corporations etc. all over the world every day. Hard to balance your ability with your vulnerability and get it Right! This ugly, vile CoC will rue the day they got this wrong as there is absolutely no-one in their coffers anywhere close to the same calibre as Penk, and now, no one to replace the insufferable Luxon which actually should have been easy!
We’ve got a bit of a pattern in the NZ politics of the last seventy-odd years, ever since this country started going downhill, slowly at first, whereby the good die young: and I am not just thinking in the literal terms of Norman Kirk here.
One also thinks of Phil Holloway who retired after serving one highly successful term as a minister from 1957 to 1960 and was regarded as the greatest leader Labour never had (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Holloway).
Or for that matter Bill Fraser (not to be confused with Peter Fraser), even more hands-on in the building sector than Penk, who oversaw Labour’s record housing construction accomplishments under Norman Kirk (34,300 new housing units in one year at a time when our population was just 3.0 million), before being removed from the Housing portfolio by Bill Rowling (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Fraser_(New_Zealand_politician).
The triumph of mediocrity, in other words.