Power Simon: General Debate 
Power Simon: General Debate 
[Volume:662;Page:10328] 
Hon SIMON POWER (Minister of Justice) 
: 
 The major disadvantage about being speaking fourth in the general debate line-up is that the third speaker gets to use the material before I do. 
It is worth taking just a bit of time to look at this Labour brand survey. It starts like this: “We want to hear your views on the Labour brand. What follows are a series of questions aimed at discovering: what you think is essential to the Labour brand how you’d like to see the brand represented and your views on a selection of existing brands. Thanks again for taking part. 1. Pick the values you’d like to see associated with Labour. Choose as many as you like.” What should be in brackets after that sentence is: “because we don’t have a clue.” 
My colleague has set out a range of options but she missed out a few that puzzled me. We have heard that some of the options are “Futuristic” “Feel good” “Bold” “Inspiring” and “Cheeky”. I thought “Cheeky” was an interesting option as were “Dynamic” “Cool” “Modern” and “Happy”. “Unusual” is one of the options as are “Artistic” “Edgy” “Out there” and “Funky”. But the one that got me absolutely flabbergasted and that made it in halfway through the list is “Sober”. It asked whether members think Labour is sober. I do not know what to make of that option or why on earth any organisation would put it in as one of its core messages for consideration as part of its branding. 
When we look closely at this survey we see between the various categories a direct contrast between issues relating to the past such as “Retro” and matters relating to the future such as “Futuristic” “Edgy” “Out there” and “Unusual”. Are they “Sophisticated”? I particularly liked “Memorable”. Is the Labour Party memorable? Other options are “Integrity” “Innovation” “Caring” “People” “Dependable” and “Approachable”. 
What does this tell us? It tells us that halfway through the term of this Government there is a sense of deepening malaise in the Opposition ranks. Watching their faces during question time today when their leader was on his feet was a sad indictment. Clayton Cosgrove is a good little scrapper—he likes to get his teeth into the odd issue and is known for putting forward a view every now and then—but he was totally disengaged. His head was up; he was looking at the ceiling during question time. His eyes were wandering he was looking at the top of the roof and he was not the slightest bit interested in what was going on. I do not mind reading about Trevor Mallard’s cycling exploits from time to time; I just wish that he would not write about them during question time when his leader is on his feet trying to hold the Government to account. 
One of the things that I found interesting about Mr Brownlee’s contribution was his mention of Phil Goff praising the political skills of the Prime Minister. Phil Goff at the moment reminds me of one of those dad characters from a 1980s sitcom and not just because  
Family Ties 
 first aired when he was in his first term in Parliament. He is following a well-used formula called the “centra eccentrics” formula where one straight character is the anchor for all of the other characters who ultimately upstage him. While Mr Goff is nervously describing his unpopularity we see a range of characters appearing in larger-than-life formats. 
David Cunliffe was understandably moved by his visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum but his  
Dominion Post  
column yesterday suggests that he is forgoing his finance role for one presenting the History Channel. Some of his prose in that article reminded me of some of his earlier work from “I am Harvard”. I have also come across another delightful piece entitled simply “Seasons”. I am no literary critic—I will leave those matters to the House—but it goes like this: “Almost without warning branches that just a few weeks before were dead dry twigs are crowned with the lushest green foliage. Spring is brief. As a delicate balance between irresistible forces wrestling for control—it gives way explosively to Summer.” It sounds decidedly like the leadership crisis in the middle of the Labour Party. He is a lead actor in his own show. 
As for old Mr Jones over here his continual calls of “hoha” in the House every time he gets to his feet remind me of Al Pacino in  
Scent of a Woman 
. He has refused to rule out a leadership challenge stating: “that lies somewhere between our caucus and providence”. Providence is also known as the work of God so I guess that is his natural modesty continuing to come through!