Bolger support grows stronger

Press, 6 March 1989, Page 1

Bolger support grows stronger

By

OLIVER RIDDELL

A week-end of turmoil in the National Party and a flurry of telephone calls has strengthened support for the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Bolger, but left the party’s president, Mr Neville Young, more exposed.

Two of National’s key figures, Mr Winston Peters and Miss Ruth Richardson, denied suggestions put by their supporters that they would combine forces to topple Mr Bolger.

National members of Parliament in Parliament last week were discussing the mechanics of such a deal between the two groups. But while they have been back in their constituencies this weekend the pressure has gone on to rally publicly behind Mr Bolger. Instead, the heat has gone back on Mr Young after the dissatisfaction among members of Parliament and within the party organisation over Mr Young’s role in the forced resignation of National’s secretary-general, Mr Max Bradford, 10 days ago. A special meeting of National’s executive committee has been called for Wednesday on the initiative of Mr Bradford’s supporters and those critical of Mr Young.

It has been learned that this meeting has been called against the wishes of Mr Young.

Mr Young is also being blamed for disloyalty to Mr Bolger for remarks he is alleged to have made at a lunch at his home with three journalists last Friday. As one of the journalists involved, this reporter knows that the off-the-record briefing was not about Mr Bolger’s leadership or any perceived challenge to it. It was a briefing on party organisation matters, which will be the subject of Wednesday’s meeting. Mr Young told Mr Bolger of the briefing and what it was about.

But if Mr Young was not talking about Mr Bolger’s leadership, National members of Parliament were.

However, both Miss Richardson and Mr Peters deny making a deal.

“I never do political deals and I won’t do one with Ruth,” Mr Peters said. Miss Richardson said she was angry that National was being subjected to a destructive and

destabilising campaign. “There are no disloyal deals on my part — just disgust that I have to waste my time on such malicious and dishonest rot,” she said.

There are three reasons causing some of Miss Richardson’s allies in and out of Parliament to question Mr Bolger’s leadership and Mr Young’s presidency. • Mr Young’s role in forcing Mr Bradford to resign and Mr Bolger’s inability to prevent it. • Mr Bolger’s reputed support for Mr Bill Birch as National’s post-1990 Minister of Finance rather than Miss Richardson.

• Mr Bolger’s dismissive treatment of Mr Murray McCully as a member of Parlialment and as a candidate for the presidency against Mr Young. These three factors have had ramifications beyond National’s internal housekeeping. They are being seen as significant in National’s chances of winning back its lost metropolitan electorates.

Mr Bolger is still fairly secure as leader. The mood of grumpiness within his caucus is not strong enough to dump him.