Election 2017: Unsecured Futures
This election is not over. Fully 15% of votes remain uncounted; the shape of Parliament is undecided; coalition talks are underway. No single party has the ‘moral authority’, whatever that may mean, to govern. So these perspective remarks are necessarily provisional, speculative, open to correction and criticism. They offer a first attempt to make sense […]
With the surge to Labour, or not?
Kick National Out! Build a socialist alternative! These are the slogans the ISO is campaigning around in this election. But what should they mean as we see this wave of enthusiasm for Labour? Martin Gregory offers his view: In this election campaign the Labour Party is reaping a tidal wave of enthusiasm from the working […]
National’s Appalling Record
The National Party is the party of business, employers and the wealthy; namely the capitalist class. If National are booted out in September, from their perspective they will at least be able to look back with satisfaction that since coming to power in 2008 they have tipped the balance even more in favour of the […]
Election 2017: Why vote, and why vote left?
The ISO is campaigning in this election around the slogan: “Kick National Out! Build a Socialist Alternative!” Our general position is given in this paper here. In this contribution, ISO member Brian Roper gives his view of how this slogan should be applied, arguing for a party vote Green. This article addresses some important questions: […]
Seeing Ardern in action
Raff Kingsbury reports from Labour’s big rally in Wellington last Sunday. At St James Theatre in Wellington yesterday, the MC introduced Jacinda Ardern with a line that would have been pure hyperbole a month ago, but now seems very possible: “Welcome the next Prime Minister of New Zealand!” The 1550 seat space was at capacity […]
A shift to the left
At last, the National Party is running scared. We in the International Socialists often noted during the three terms of John Key-Bill English government that National’s strategy has been to wage the class war in piecemeal fashion and avoid confrontation when resistance threatened. For example, the government backed down to the teachers’ unions over schools’ […]
Jacindamania!
Just a few weeks ago, the general election looked set to be a contest between Andrew Little and Bill English: battle of the grey bores! The only question was which camp Winston Peters would choose. Well, what a turnaround! The election campaign has been a rollercoaster. On 16 June, in a speech at a Green […]
Labour: Understanding Reformism
Labour Parties pose a great puzzle and a challenge for revolutionary socialists in New Zealand, Australia, and Britain. Labour is the oldest political party in New Zealand, and continues to command the ‘support’ (however grudging) of much of the working class. The party is remarkably resilient. After overseeing massive attacks on the working class in […]
We Need a Socialist Party
In January 1972 Bernadette Devlin McAliskey, 25-year old MP for Mid Ulster elected on an ‘independent socialist’ ticket, crossed the floor of the House of Commons in the British Parliament and punched Home Secretary Reginald Maudling in the face. He, a Conservative, had just spoken to Parliament blaming the deaths of “Bloody Sunday”, when British […]
Little’s resignation: Labour Must Change Course
Andrew Little’s resignation as Leader at Labour’s caucus meeting on Tuesday morning (1 August) has shocked the political world. We can accept Little’s reason at face value. He cited opinion polls: Sunday’s One News Colmar Brunton poll, Monday’s Newshub Reid poll and Labour’s private polling. These polls showed Labour’s support down to 24 percent, below […]
