Hunua judgment lesson to Labour?

Press, 26 May 1979, Page 6

Hunua judgment lesson to Labour?

This week’s judgment on the Hunua election result had taught the Labour Party 7 a lesson: be as active as you like but keep within the law, said the Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) in Christchurch last evening.

Mr Muldoon told the conference of the National Party’s Canterbury-Westland division that the judgment, which gave the seat to the National candidate, Mr W. R. Peters, was a revelation. He said the irregularities which had been found in-1 volved straight malpractice.

Mr Peters had more evidence relating to voting irregularities but he had decided not to put it before the court because it would have resulted in a by-election. Mr Muldoon said.

Mr Peters had been certain he would win, and now intended to disclose the evidence at some time later. On the basis of the court’s decision, Mr Muldoon be-j lieved that the election result in the Auckland Central electorate in 1975 could have been overturned. Many other results in the General Election could also have been overturned had the National Party moved and had it known what the Hunua decision would be. Mr Muldoon said that in 30 vears he had never seen deliberate malpractice bv a National ’’arty worker at election time. He told the conference thatl talks over the last few days with the Commissioner of Agriculture of the European Common Market (Mr F. O. Gundelach) had produced 1 proposals which could make'

more progress than had been made for many years on New .Zealand trade access to [Europe. A proposal by Mr Gundelach would go to the Cabinet on Monday. “It looks good to Brian Taiboys and myself.” said Mr Muldoon.

The proposal represented an agreement between New Zealand and the E.E.C. which would provide “something firm going into the future.” With this there would be no argument each year over prices for New Zealand produce exported to Britain.

Mr Muldoon said that an agreement reached yesterday on the long-standing Wellington boilermakers dispute did [not entail a commitment on the Government. The Federation of Labour was to take over the deregistered union until two controversial projects — the Bank of New Zealand building and the container crane in Wellington — were complete, he said. Then the union would be registered on terms agreeable to the Government and the F.O.L. He had a kind word for the new president of the F.O.L. (Mr W J. Knox), saying he believed that Mr Knox would follow the moderate line of his predecessor (Sir Thomas .Skinner). The boilermakers agreement had been achieved between Mr Knox and the Minister of Labour

(Mr Bolger) “with myself hovering round the fringes.” Mr Muldoon did not say when the Budget would be announced though final details would be “tidied up” by the Cabinet on Monday.

The Government was in the process of switching from “a tidying-up operation to longer-term policies," Mr Muldoon said. The coming Budget, his tenth, was by far the most difficult he had’prepared, but, after months of effort, it was “almost right.” “It will be an interesting Budget; it will take a lot of understanding but I believe in the end people will see what we have been working towards,” he said. It was a bad time to be in Government around the world, said Mr Muldoon. “You can only govern properly by upsetting people, unfortunately.”

The conference last evening passed remits calling for the export of West Coast coal and the lowering of South Island bulk-power prices. The West Coast electorate moved in favour of exporting deposits of coal discovered in a recent drilling programme as a way of helping the balance of payments and assisting regional development.

This remit and the second, dealing with electricity concessions, were unanimously adopted by the conferences.