The future of the Left in New Zealand – notes for Christchurch seminar held on 11 April 2016

If one looked at New Zealand in isolation from events internationally one could be forgiven for thinking we are a permanent bastion of neo-liberalism where struggling low and middle income families are happy with the rich running the country at everyone else’s expense.

We have a right-wing Prime Minister and government which is apparently very popular. National has won the past three elections supporting policies which have grown income inequality while wealth inequality has become more extreme year by year. Despite New Zealanders saying they don’t like the growing divide between rich and poor there is no sign of any big disturbance to this unhappy situation. The main opposition party, Labour, has no plans for any significant change to the neo-liberal status quo which it introduced from 1984.

On the other hand countries overseas are being shaken by a growing restlessness about inequality. The Occupy Movement was a sign of that but indications of discontent are everywhere around the globe. Jeremy Corbyn’s election as leader of the Labour Party and the Bernie Sanders phenomenon in the US are the most high profile but we’ve also seen the rapid growth of radical left-wing alternatives in many countries around the world.

Why not NZ?

One of the media myths we live with is that John Key is a special Prime Minister, that he’s a great communicator and has the common touch. Many political commentators say we haven’t seen the likes of a PM like him for many decades. He has certainly survived myriad personal political scandals that would have brought most leaders down several times over.

So why does National and Key continue to have big support in public opinion polls?

I think there are two reasons. Firstly because huge numbers of people are so disengaged from the political process they follow issues and developments at a very superficial level – something encouraged by the likes of right-wing commentator/journalists Mike Hosking, Paul Henry and Sean Plunkett. It’s not that most people are apathetic. They are interested in politics but they are disillusioned with the politics of the mainstream parties. It’s the kind of mood summed up well in the political graffiti I saw around Auckland in the 1970s courtesy the Communist Party (or was it the Anarchists?) “Don’t vote – Fletchers always wins”.

Secondly and more importantly has been the absolute, crippling failure of Labour to show any direction other than what they’ve delivered for the past 35 years – the rule of the 1%. Labour survives as a political party because of its brand recognition. There’s nothing else left. Despite its rhetoric the differences in economic policy between Labour and National are cosmetic. Labour has no policies to reduce income inequality – NONE!!

Within Labour there is a battle going on between some more progressive members and a small but powerful group of MPs linked to the 1980s who stifle any moves to shift the party away from neo-liberalism. Ironically Labour’s last two election defeats have left this group in a stronger position within the party as a larger minority in a smaller caucus. They occupy safe Labour seats and/or are high on the party list. This group involves people like Phil Goff (who introduced GST and tertiary education fees back in the 1980s) Trevor Mallard, Clayton Cosgrove, Annette King and Damien O’Connor.

Goff is now the corporate choice to run Auckland as city mayor – a place his fellow former Labour MP Lianne Dalziel now occupies in Christchurch as the corporate pick for mayor.
This minority within a minority party are an enormous roadblock to change – a position reinforced by the fact the mainstream media see politics as left Vs right in terms of Labour Vs National. That’s the political context whereby the news is presented to New Zealanders and the mainstream media follows it religiously. (Take for example Radio NZ using Michelle Boag and Brian Edwards as their right Vs left commentators)

The Greens and New Zealand First I think of as niche parties which will never develop a mass base to become the government. In the case of the Greens their policies are much more progressive than Labour but in the public mind the Greens are linked with concern for the environment which for struggling families appears as a secondary concern to holding body and soul together.

Let’s be honest

New Zealand is still going backwards as we have every year since the 1984 Labour government wreaked havoc with the economy and lives of working New Zealanders. The rich are still winning the class war with Labour and National firmly on their side. The wealthy grow ever more bloated while the share of wealth going to low and middle income families continues to diminish.
National is continuing down this path with the likes of charter schools, selling state houses, privatising prison contracts, contracting out public services and a thousand other attacks on families on low incomes.

From here on…

Change will come to New Zealand – just as it is happening in other countries – and when it does it will be broader, deeper and move more quickly than we expect. It will be either the Donald Trump variety or the Bernie Sanders variety or possibly both. It will take us all by surprise.
I therefore think the future is very hopeful and the challenge for the left is to have in place the vision, the campaigns and the policies which will give hope to the missing million voters and struggling low and middle income families in particular. If the left is not ready to respond with radical political messages of hope and optimism then we will be leaving the country open for fascism.

These political messages have to be set in reality so the left must be actively engaged in campaigns which support the living wage with guaranteed hours of work; better public services; the end to privatisation of our public assets and contracting out of public services; opposition to user pays charges; opposition to privatisation of state housing; high quality affordable housing for everyone; swimmable rivers and polluter-pays policies etc

I have always believed that political activists can be more effective outside parliament than in it because politicians rarely lead political change (except on behalf of the 1% when they use the rhetoric of helping the poor to advance the agenda of the rich).

However I’m a member of the Mana Movement and it’s the only parliamentary party I’ve ever joined or wanted to be part of. Unless Maori are at the heart of a broad movement inside and outside parliament promoting radical change then whatever it is it won’t be socialism. Maori are the indigenous people and are at the heart of the New Zealand working class. They have suffered the most through the last 30 years in particular from successive National and Labour governments.

If we get things right for Maori we get things right for everyone.

Socialism in New Zealand will be different to what it looks like in any other countries because each country has a different history and different realities. However the principles of socialism are common everywhere and will be reflected in the kiwi socialism for which we are striving.