Bob Jones to contest Ohariu seat

Press, 21 January 1983, Page 3

Bob Jones to contest Ohariu seat

PA Wellington The Wellington businessman and long-time supporter of the National Party, Mr Bob Jones, intends to stand against the Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Templeton, in the next General Election. Mr Jones announced yesterday that he would stand as an Independent National candidate in Mr Templeton's Ohariu electorate.

he also predicted that several other Cabinet Ministers—the Minister of Works and Development, Mr Friedlander, the Minister of Health, Mr Malcolm, and the Minister of Transport. Mr Gair—might face similar challenges in their electorates.

Mr Jones said that he had decided to contest the seat, at present held by Mr Templeton by a majority of 1567 votes, because he was angry at the direction the party was going. . He claimed the National Party had abandoned the philosophy on which it had been elected. “I believe in what the party stands for but some Parliamentary members, not all of them, are not applying that philosophy,” said Mr Jones.

“They are more concerned about political survival than running the country.”

Mr Jones said he would stand on- the question of principle. For a party to go to the public with a political philosophy and then abandon it was clearly an abuse of the democratic process. "I believe that principle must come before the power.

but unfortunately power has become an end in itself." he said.

The actions of the Government in the last vear with retrospective legislation “utterly untenable in the Right-wing party,” the tax legislation, and the wageprice freeze which “simply did not make- sense” showed how far the party had gone in abandoning what it supposedly stood for.

Mr Jones said he was not abandoning the National Party but he had decided to challenge Mr Templeton in order “to shake the party up."

He said he would conduct a vigorous campaign with the aim of winning, a campaign based not on handshaking and baby-kissing but on principle.

He admitted that his chances of taking the seat were slight, but said “If I run there is no question that Hugh Templeton will lose. He .has developed to an art form the reduction of electorate majorities.” Mr Jones predicted he would get a lot df support from disgruntled National Party supporters—at least 1000 votes—and that, combined with what he called “the Hugh factor,” a strong Labour candidate, and the electorate boundary changes would ensure that Mr Templeton would lose the seat which he had held since 1975. . -

When asked if he would continue . supporting the National Party financially, Mr Jones said. “Of course not. But I will be spending plenty on my own campaign and perhaps on some others."