Hodgson Pete: General Debate 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Hodgson Pete: General Debate 
[Sitting date: 17 June 2009. Volume:655;Page:4380. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon PETE HODGSON (Labour—Dunedin North) 
: 
 I welcome the applauding member Cam Calder to the House. I hope he has a good career here—not too good of course but I hope he has a good time. 
Only one person in the land had the control needed to manufacture his own double-booking on the evening of Saturday 13 June and that person was the Prime Minister. Only he knew that he had a private engagement at Huka Lodge that Saturday and only he had the authority to pick 13 June as by-election day. He did not pick 6 June 20 June or any other Saturday in June. He picked 13 June so that he would not need to be there. If National had won the Mt Albert by-election last Saturday Mr Key’s longstanding private engagement at Huka Lodge would have been rescheduled on the spot and a ring would have been put around that date. He would have been there; there is no doubt about that. I ask the members which engagement was decided first. Was the by-election day of 13 June decided first or was the so-called longstanding private engagement at Huka Lodge settled in the Prime Minister’s diary first? One can play it either way. 
My guess is that the longstanding private engagement at the exclusive Huka Lodge in Taupo was put together in a hurry only a few weeks ago. That would be my guess because 8 weeks ago the Prime Minister was speaking confidently of the distinct possibility of victory with his personally chosen candidate Melissa Lee. So I reckon the date of the by-election was settled first and the longstanding private engagement at the exclusive Huka Lodge came later probably about 3 or 4 weeks ago when the Prime Minister thought that he and his party would get done over and that it would be a dog’s dinner. He thought he needed to get out of Auckland where he lives because it would be best not to be around when the drubbing came. He realised he could not go to Hawaii because that would seem a little bit too far a little bit exclusive and a little bit eyebrow-raising. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: And it would be a hell of a lot cheaper to go to Huka Lodge! 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: Yeah! He could not go to Wellington or Christchurch because there would be too many television cameras there—they have networks you know. He thought it would be better to go to Taupo where there are not so many cameras. What is more he could go to the exclusive Huka Lodge and therefore be excluded. So the Prime Minister was over and out for the night of 13 June. I think that is what the Prime Minister did. His personal management was to get the hell out of there become excluded and stay away from media coverage. 
His management of Cabinet was no better. His strategy was every man for himself and Melissa Lee for herself. There was no support no loyalty no lines no tactics—nothing. It was a case of getting out of there and waiting until the by-election passed. The Deputy Prime Minister was not around. He was no doubt off on urgent public business in Dipton. There was no member from the front bench Aucklander or otherwise. As far as I can work out only two members of the executive turned up. That means that 26 members did not turn up including as Maryan Street said a bunch of folk from Auckland. The president of the National Party was not there and when she was asked where she was on the night she squealed that she was told by Jonathan Hunt that there was heaps of support— 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: Coleman! 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: Jonathan Coleman; I apologise to both men. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: Jonathan Hunt is twice the man he is! 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: That is quite true. Anyway Jonathan Coleman told the president of the National Party Judy Kirk that there was heaps of support around and “heaps” as far as I can work out meant him and Pansy Wong. Jenny Kirk was less than supportive in her own remarks. Let me read them to the members. Jenny Kirk said— 
Hon Dr Jonathan Coleman 
: Judy Kirk! Jenny was one of yours. 
Hon PETE HODGSON 
: Judy Kirk said this about her own candidate: “She is emotional. I have seen that on a couple of occasions when she has gone to speak and it may be her culture”. Who needs friends like that? If I were Melissa Lee I would be unimpressed by that comment. Melissa Lee was hung out to dry. 
Charles Chauvel has taken up the cudgel of what the Prime Minister failed to do in that week not to do with the by-election but to do with Dr Richard Worth. He has gone through that story very very well.