Guyon asks if Government can find its luggage

Guyon Espiner writes:

Momentum, clarity and cohesion are essential check-in items for a happy travelling government but right now they are three items of lost luggage for the Labour-led government.

Sometimes a Government won’t have all three of these at the same time. But it is rare for a Government to have none of them!

Media exploring the distance between the coalition partners on these issues are sometimes met with a loud riposte: They’re different parties! It’s MMP, stupid!

They have a point. But it’s a point Labour and NZ First must absorb themselves. Either Labour ministers are carelessly promoting plans which don’t have full government support or NZ First is reminding Labour where the real power lies.

If you don’t have the numbers on the House, then make sure you speak to other parties before opening your mouth.

Ms Ardern’s flight out to the forum will be largely empty, with her and maybe a smattering of staff rattling around in that plane. It might be a good time to figure out what’s gone missing in the past few weeks.

Someone needs to find the lost luggage and the flight plan. The government needs to regain momentum, clarity and cohesion. It needs to look like it knows where it’s going and assure people that the moving parts are travelling in the same direction.

Good advice.