Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More
Parliament

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | Video | Questions Of the Day | Search

 

Liberty Belle: Freedom & Prosperity

Deborah Coddington's Liberty Belle

Freedom & Prosperity

Those were the words; that was the slogan of the New Zealand Party, founded 20 years ago by Sir Robert Jones. Last night Liberty Belle hosted a wee function in Parliament's Grand Hall to celebrate the occasion.

Not that I was ever a member of the New Zealand Party. I was a leftie back in 1984 when the New Zealand Party captured 12.5 per cent of the vote, helped oust Rob's Mob and paved the way for the Lange Douglas economic revolution.

I was living in Russell, and I remember heckling the NZ party candidate for Northland - the redoubtable Wayne Brown - at a meeting in the Russell Town Hall.

But somewhere along the way between Russell and Wellington I was mugged by reality. So here I was last night, an ACT MP, hosting a function in honour of Sir Robert, at which Chris Trotter, political commentator and renowned leftie, was the guest speaker.

And a strange day it had been for me. Earlier in the afternoon I delivered a speech on free trade and globalisation to the Importers' Institute Conference in Auckland. I talked about how tariffs on footwear and clothing hurt low income families the most.

I said that I believed the anti-free trade movement was more about diehard prejudices against the forces for good in globalisation, and that the socialists were now hiding in the hemp suits of 'environmentalists'. It's easier to say you care for the environment than say you oppose property rights. It sounds nicer to say 'fair trade not free trade'.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

Who should be following on from me as a speaker at the conference? None other than Chris Trotter - a view from the left, as director Daniel Silva put it, to counter my view from the right.

Well, I'm not sure if those divisions hold any more. What should have been interesting to the attendees (those who hadn't been sent to sleep by both of us in the post-prandial hum of the afternoon) was how Trotter and I converged on some points.

His lament was that the left is now more to do with being stubbornly resistant to change, and less to do with a philosophy that once made communism as international as capitalism.

The left in New Zealand, he said, is reduced to fighting to keep tariffs on imported clothing which only serve to increase the prices the poor must pay to put teeshirts on their own backs.

Snap.

Once the left stood shoulder to shoulder, Trotter said, today he's not sure with whom he should be rubbing shoulders.

I like that. I enjoy a world where I can rub shoulders of an evening with people as interesting and diverse as Chris Trotter and Sir Robert Jones. Not because of who they are, but because of what they are - intelligent, curious and likeable people.

Generous spirited people who enjoy a laugh; who enjoy life - freedom and prosperity.

Yours in liberty,
Deborah Coddington

Liberty Belle is a column from Deborah Coddington, Member of Parliament for ACT New Zealand.


© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines


Gordon Campbell: On The US Opposition To Mortgage Interest Deductibility For Landlords


Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don't think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of political capital by giving landlords a huge $2.9 billion tax break via interest deductibility, while still preaching the need for austerity to the disabled, and to everyone else...
More


 
 

Government: Concerns Conveyed To China Over Cyber Activity
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity... More

ALSO:


Government: GDP Decline Reinforces Government’s Fiscal Plan

Declining GDP for the December quarter reinforces the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says... More

ALSO:


Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.