A Small Step in the Wrong Direction
New Zealand First MPH Barbara Stewart's members bill cutting the number of MPs from 120 to 100 was passed 61 to 60 at its first reading last night.
The bill will founder and so it should.
The number of MPs in our parliament is not the problem. In fact I would be comfortable with more. The problem is their lack of accountability and the lack of constitutional checks on their ability to exceed what should be limited powers
Originally, MPs were chosen to represent a region. That is, you were elected by the citizens of Upper Kaiapoi or West Temuka to protect their interests.
Legitimate interests might be that the area was being effectively policed, had a functioning justice system and had sufficient militia or soldiers to protect against marauders.
If that was an MPs sole responsibility, the workload would be light, the job part time and the remuneration modest. We could then afford more MPs who would be harder to control by party executives. The ratio of MPH to constituents would also be lower.
Under the diabolical system of MMP, society is divided into competing groups-Maori, Greens, Torys, "workers" etc, each with representatives out to gain their group as much as possible by ripping off the other groups.
The concept is essentially Marxist and the outcome (bigger government, more transfer payments) is predictable.
A focus on the number of MPs is a red herring. The focus should be on their powers, or more accurately, the limitation of them.
The bill will founder and so it should.
The number of MPs in our parliament is not the problem. In fact I would be comfortable with more. The problem is their lack of accountability and the lack of constitutional checks on their ability to exceed what should be limited powers
Originally, MPs were chosen to represent a region. That is, you were elected by the citizens of Upper Kaiapoi or West Temuka to protect their interests.
Legitimate interests might be that the area was being effectively policed, had a functioning justice system and had sufficient militia or soldiers to protect against marauders.
If that was an MPs sole responsibility, the workload would be light, the job part time and the remuneration modest. We could then afford more MPs who would be harder to control by party executives. The ratio of MPH to constituents would also be lower.
Under the diabolical system of MMP, society is divided into competing groups-Maori, Greens, Torys, "workers" etc, each with representatives out to gain their group as much as possible by ripping off the other groups.
The concept is essentially Marxist and the outcome (bigger government, more transfer payments) is predictable.
A focus on the number of MPs is a red herring. The focus should be on their powers, or more accurately, the limitation of them.
posted by Trevor Loudon at
3/16/2006 03:13:00 PM
3 Comments:
While I agree with you on issues of accountability Trevor you have missed that this is part of the point of reducing the number of MP's.
We, New Zealand voters, voted democratically by something like 90% in a referendum at election 1999 to reduce the number of MP's to 100.
Thet politicians of all hues are so concerned to keep the pie larger to retain their jobs that they ignore the democratic wishes of the New Zealand public demonstrates their total lack of accountability.
Good for Barabra Stewart on this issue, she is one of the few Parliamentarians to stand up for our wishes.
Agree and disagree. If NZ voters were asked if they wanted to cut MPs down to 80 they probably would too, nobody really trusts them :)
The referendum system we set up is a farce anyway as we all know that the Government of the time can chose to ignore the vote - what is the sense in that?
You're quite right about the referendum Graham. No point in having them if they're not binding. I voted agaist it though.
The real issue I'm getting at though is not the number of MPs we have, but the degree to which they are limited in their power power over us and how accountable they are to their local electorate.
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