King Annette: General Debate 
King Annette: General Debate 
[Volume:640;Page:10475] 
Hon ANNETTE KING (Minister of State Services) 
: 
 It has become obvious day by day that the front bench of the National Party is not cracking. It is not cracking because it is already cracked. It is cracked from Nick Smith right through to the whole line-up. It is not cracking; it is cracked. 
I want to tell this House a story that John Key hoped would never emerge. He has worked hard to keep this under wraps and under a modicum of control but he has failed because there are too many loose lips in his caucus; too many people talking to too many outsiders after too many tipples at the caucus party. His secret is out. John Key cannot control his caucus. He is being led by the nose by the former Young Turks who are now called the “Old Jerks” in the form of Bill English Tony Ryall and Nick Smith. In the words of Bill English they just leave John Key to bounce from cloud to cloud while the boys do the real politics in that party. 
The failure to support the joint regulator bill—the Therapeutic Products and Medicines Bill—has exposed John Key’s inability to control his caucus. If he cannot control a caucus he cannot lead a country. The end gain for Tony Ryall was never to get a compromise on that bill. He set out to destroy it from day one and John Key could not stop him unlike the leader of the National Party before him Don Brash. 
Don Brash wrote to Helen Clark on 7 July 2004 and said: “In principle I see advantages of New Zealand and Australia being able to make progress in this area together. I agree that the proposal for a fifty-fifty participation in the governance is an important advance. I am prepared to recommend to my caucus colleagues that we work together supporting the proposals in principle provided we can see changes that will accommodate reasonable concerns raised including the need to have a separate process for high-risk medicines and low-risk complementary medicines.” It was not about removal but a sensible approach. 
That quote was from Don Brash in 2004. That is very different from what National says—that it never supported the legislation from day one. That was a porky then and it is a porky now. Members should compare Don Brash’s approach to the dithering of John Key. And members should have watched the reaction of Tony Ryall when he was advised that the bill would be postponed. Did he talk about public safety? Did he talk about the quality of products? Did he talk about the relationship with Australia? Did he even talk about people? No he did not. He went straight to the political soapbox and branded us a lame-duck Government. Well if not being able to proceed with bills about dodgy pills and dog microchips is the benchmark of a lame-duck Government then if National members ever do get into Government they will be sitting ducks because they will be there for quick removal. 
John Key has told people privately that Tony Ryall threatened to cross the floor if the Nats supported the bill. Crossing the floor of course would mean crossing it to work with the Green Party. John Key said he could not afford that sort of division in his caucus. John Key is also being rather economical with the truth in saying that he never talked to Labour about a two-tier system as proposed first by Gordon Copeland and then by Winston Peters. In fact Gordon Copeland has just confirmed with me that that proposal was taken to John Key. On the day it was taken he was in favour of it; the next day he was opposed to it. 
John Key said that we never talked to him. National refused to believe that it had been spoken to. Michael Cullen spoke to John Key about a two-tier system but according to John Key that was not an approach. Well hello it took only a note from the Prime Minister and a wee meeting in the lobby before John Key was able to work on a compromise on the anti - child beating bill but two or three calls from the Deputy Prime Minister are not considered to be a real consultation or any sort of discussion. John Key could not get any change out of the power brokers in the National Party. They were for it once; they are not now. They should be ashamed of themselves.