MR ROWLING’S FIRST YEAR No antagonism with Mr Kirk — but a closer-knit team later

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33933, 28 August 1975, Page 10

MR ROWLING’S FIRST YEAR No antagonism with Mr Kirk — but a closer-knit team later

By (

CEDRIC MENTIPLAY

11l a feu tension-packed minutes on September 6 last year, the Labour caucus chose small. 46-year-old Wallace Edward Rowling to replace the larger-than-life Norman Kirk as the party’s political leader and Prime Minister of .New Zealand.

Since then, people hase been comparing the mild, diffident approach and mannerisms of Mr Rowling with the bolder impact of his predecessor.

This has been exten-i ded. as pre-election fer- ' vour increases, to some , extravagant and illogical comparisons, linked > with denigration of Mr Rowling as leader and politician. i It has recently been i claimed, for instance, that Mr Kirk avoided his Minis-'I ter of Finance, even to, employing another Labour ■ member (Mr J. G. O’Brien i of Island Bay> to seek the economic views of promi-, nent men outside the party: without Mr Rowling’s knowledge. I Before evaluating Mr < Rowling's performance over t rhe past year, this sort ofli criticism and innuendo 1 should be put in perspective, t What was the relationship i between Mr Kirk and his it Minister of Finance? I asked Mr Rowling how things t were in the days before Mr : Kirk s developing illness. < “Not easy — but ... "Norman Kirk was not an < easy man to get alongside," Mr Rowling told me. “But, |i by the same token, it would t be quite wrong to suggest! that there was an inbuilt, I antagonism between us." < Mr Rowling explained that it every Wednesday morning, when both were in Welling- t ton, he would go up to the 1 Prime Ministerial suite andii "we would kick things t ai and for half an hour or i

more. ” The "things" would, 1 cover monetary and economic matters, and the meet-j ing was a regular fixture. It fell by the wayside more for reasons of Mr Kirk’s health than for anything e'se. Mr Rowling said. Mr Kirk s illness was more prolonged than most people thought. It seemed to develop from early in 1974. "He was really on and off! from the time he had. the 1 operation on his legs." He was never quite himself; again after that.” Loyalty. teamwork On the day Mr Rowling' became Prime Minister, he, spoke to journalists about, the future. He mentioned the importance of domestic af-1 fairs in contrast to overseas matters, and emphasised the i value of loyalty and team-! work within" the Cabinet. Mr flow!ing was very' firm) that day about disloyalty; and laziness — qualities ini Cabinet Ministers which he; would not tolerate. As al desirable feature, he selected “the ability of Cabinet Ministers each to co-operate with the other." “This related to past practices by some Ministers of commenting on areas which belonged to other Ministers.” And Mr Rowling spoke; then on what has come to; be known as his “low-profile! image." “I hope to continue; to' he a relatively low-key; politician,” he said. “I am

not contemplating any whistle-stop tours.’ How has this programme worked out? Specifically, j how has he fared with the Cabinet and caucus?

“I think generally, in I terms of administration and jthe allocation of responsibility, it has worked out| much as I had hoped,” Mr' Rowling told me. “We changed a number of I things, as you would expect. Different personalities run things in different ways. Caucus rarely runs full time, never over time. This is because members are required to submit their agenda items, and to speak properly to them. “Cabinet is the same.

Manx’ meetings now finish ■ in the morning, leaving Ministers more time to get on with what they are about, or Cabinet more time to deal with more general items. There is still not enough of this. . .” Mr Rowling has been working with some success to get groups of Ministers to work together. He admits he has not found the answer to general Cabinet discussion on general subjects. Appointments “Time is the problem. The pressures seem to increase, and there is a very great difficulty in getting the fel[lows you want together all lat once. Even on a cabinet day you’ll find senior Ministers have to get away. They know that with any kind of luck Cabinet will be finished no later than 1 p.m. Therefore they’ll make afternoon appointments to make the best of their time.”

He woi'ks closely with individual Ministers, particularly the ones involved with I important economic issues — the Minister of Finance (Mr lizard), the Minister of trade and Industry l (Mr, Freer), and latterly the Minister of Labour (Mr Faulkner). Of Mr Faulkner, he said: “Because of the circumstances involved, this has been a pretty close liaison. I must say that Arthur Faulkner is a very good Minister Ito keep you informed on his I end of things.” i He does not over- ! emphasise the amount of <work he does with other : Ministers, and has to be ■drawn out on this, though it lis very apparent in the day-j ; to-day work of the Govern-1 ment.'His contact with other! 'members of the Cabinet he' I described to me as: Liaison > “More spasmodic, depending again on a particular problem that a Minister either wants to press harderto the Cabinet, or where he has the power of decision, but on which he needs another opinion.” Mr Rowling is not prepared to compare his way 'with the way adopted by other Prime Ministers, but under some pressure he confided to me: “I can only say I suspect there is a much I closer liaison. Ministers and ■ other members feel fairly [free to come and g 0...” ' He has frequent contact! | with the Senior whip (Mr R.! IM. Barclay) who keeps him: posted about the day-to-day | running of the House. There [ are also contacts with the

Chairman of Committees and with Mr {Speaker. The backbenchers have their right of access direct to the Prime Minister immediately after the House rises on Tuesday afternoons — an innovation made by Mr Rowling when he became Prime Minister. According to what serves as a New Zealand Constitution, the Prime Minister has ultimate power over all portfolios. The Ministers are merely members assisting I I the Prime Minister at his I pleasure. ■ This prompted me to ask' iMr Rowling whether he had; 'taken over a portfolio, even! if only for a few days, ini the past year. His reply in I itself was an interesting; commentary on the Rowling way of doing things: “I have not taken a portfolio back, nor would I attempt to. There may be specific areas to which a Minister might give more attention — but this is a matter which can be discussed with him directly. He has been allocated a task, and I expect him to fulfil it. “When it appears to me that there are some deficiencies — and remember it is merely an opinion at that stage — then I discuss things with the Minister concerned, and expect a reaction. “After all, I have a portfolio of my own — Foreign Affairs — plus other responsibilities. There’s more than

I enough work without using - the right you have given to ’ a Minister.” Mr Rowling paused for a ■ moment. “If he totally fails, ’ then there is the ultimate — ito put another Minister i there. From the time I took over I have kept ministerial ; changes down to what I re- . garded as a minimum.”

This is the first of two articles by our Parliamentary reoorter on the change in political leadership after the death of Mr Kirk on August 31 last year. The second article will appear on Saturday.