Speaker Wilson

There appears to be a growing consensus that the appointment of Margaret Wilson as Speaker is to be blunt bizarre. Even within Labour there are a number of people who are very very sceptical at whether WIlson has the experience and temperment to be Speaker. She certainly has the intellectual ability, but that is not a big requirement.

Wilson will be elected Speaker – she has 71 votes already pledged to her. I am somewhat surprised that Unioted Future are blindly voting in favour.

The NZ Herald’s editorial on this issue is well worth a read. They touch on the fact she has only bene an MP for five years, has neven been in Opposition, and in fact has never even been a backbencher.

Max Johns at Fighting Talk has done some very good research on this issue.and finds WIlson will be the least experienced Speaker since at least 1943. Lewis Holden has also done a good round up of opinion nad has a sensible proposal about needing a super majority to elect the Spaker, to ensure someone broadly acceptable. Clem Simich and Ross Robertson could get 75%. Ann Hartley and Margaret Wilson would not.