Mr Beetham’s job decision soon

Press, 25 July 1984, Page 12

Mr Beetham’s job decision soon

PA Palmerston North Social Credit’s leader, Mr Bruce Beetham, says he will reveal his political future this week-end. Mr Beetham who lost his Rangitikei seat to National by an election-night margin of 330, said on Monday that Social Credit’s governing Dominion council would hold a long post-mortem into the election this weekend in Auckland. After this Mr Beetham said he would announce his future plans. “I have listened with interest to various proposals which have been floated since the election.”

Those included the possibility of Mr Beetham retaining the leadership, Social Credit changing its name, and a general restructuring of the party. Mr Beetham said he wanted to hear how the

Dominion council saw his future role with the party and what other plans it had for Social Credit. “I want to hear what they’re thinking, what they would like me to do. Once I

know what they want then I can respond.” Mr Beetham said that if he had held Rangitikei — “and I haven’t given up hope yet” — then the July 14 snap election would have been a great victory for Social Credit. “As it is we won two seats and that’s the important thing. It’s nonsense to say that the New Zealand Party is now the country’s third party simply because they got a higher percentage of the vote than us. “Under our electoral system, it’s seats that count.” Mr Beetham said the party was not dead. “We’ll fight back as we have in the past.” He predicted that with National out of office the polls would show a. steady rise in support for Social Credit.