Mr Taiboys to retire?

Press, 23 October 1980, Page 4

Mr Taiboys to retire?

NZPA Political correspondent Wellington The Deputy Prime Minister (Mr Taiboys) had intended to retire from politics at next year’s General Election, a reliable source told NZPA yesterday. • It ; is believed that the Gore branch of Mr Talboys’s Wallace electorate has already decided whom it Will back as his successor in the safe National seat. With a membership of about 1000, the Gore branch controls about half the voting power for candidates in the electorate and could con-

fidently expect its nomination to be successful. Mr Taiboys, now the key figure in an unprecedented leadership crisis in the Government caucus, has held the seat for 23 years. His retirement had been expected by political observers in Wellington, but Mr Taiboys has remained silent about his future. He has said only that he will make up his mind next month. But NZPA was told by a source in Wellington yesterday that the Gore branch was in no doubt that Mr TalboyS intended to retire. Only the possibility of his taking over the leadership

one that now seems remote — would persuade him against it, the source said. It is widely known that Mr Taiboys does not keep the best of health, although his staff are quick to point out that there is no doubt about his capacity to work long hours under difficult conditions.

A loyal workhorse for the National Party, Mr Taiboys is a consensus politician who adheres to the philosophy that two heads are better than one when it comes to making decisions. This had led some people to label him indecisive, but the description is rejected by many of his dose offl-

date who say his main talent is to listen to opposing views and look for common ground. Among the moat experienced Ministers in Mr Muldoon's Cabinet, Mr Taiboys became the National Party’s deputy leader In 1974, when Sir John Marshall was ousted. He is also Minister of Foreign Affairs and has held the portfolios of Education, Science, National Development, and Agriculture, which he held for a record six years until 1969. Mr Taiboys has a 200 h« sheep farm la his electorate at Heddon Bush, Southland,