Friday, November 01, 2013



A contrast on renewal

Over the past few weeks we've seen a number of National MPs announce that they will be retiring at the next election. Chris Tremain, Phil Heatley, Paul Hutchison, Cam Calder, Chris Auchinvole have all announced they will be going, and today Bill English effectively joined them, announcing that he would be a list MP next election (which allows easy mid-term retirement). National is clearly planning for renewal, the process of handing power to a new generation of MPs.

Meanwhile, Labour's rump of ageing, underperforming relics - Trevor Mallard, Annette King, Damien O'Connor and Phil Goff - grimly cling on to their seats, refusing to make way for younger, more talented candidates. Isn't it time they went too?