Clem to retire
NZPA reports that Clem Simich is retiring after 16 years in Parliament.
Clem is hugely respected by pretty much all MPs for his fairness and manner as Deputy Speaker. He makes what can be a very tough job look easy.
I also remember with regret that his proposal (or the proposal from the Select Committee he chaired) to move the Beehive back and extend Parliament House to its intended full size never got implemented. That would have allowed Bowen House to be let go on and get Parliament back onto one site.
Clem’s low key style often led people to under-estimate him. However I recall working with him a bit on the 2001/02 boundary changes and Clem was just a mine of information. Where I had to look up polling place results, Clem could just point to an area and talk authoritatively on how good or bad that area was for National and Labour.
I also recall being the the huge party in the Grand Hall at Parliament to celebrate the passing of the Civil Unions Act and Clem was one of only a handful of National MPs to vote for it. So many people were going up to him and thanking him for his support, and he got huge cheers when he spoke to the crowd.
His retirement is an inevitable part of National’s ongoing renewal, so this means only 45 MPs standing for re-election, which means there could be quite a big intake in 2008 on current polls.
April 29th, 2008 at 9:50 am
Shift the Beehive? It was going to cost $200m!
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0006/S00072.htm
April 29th, 2008 at 10:12 am
Every election there should be an expectation that at least 6 MPs will retire as part of an on-going renewal process for the Party. Politics is NOT a life-style option. The sacrifice by one’s family is too great for that. You should have certain key goals to achieve when you come in, and when they are spent and you are spent then it is time to move on an allow another to come forward.
April 29th, 2008 at 10:41 am
A complete washout. When he was Police Minister, I expressed my old Granny’s increasing concern with rising crime to him and he looked at me like a stunned mullet. Totally out of it. Less initiative than a one cell amoeba. More like Clem should go and the sooner the better.
April 29th, 2008 at 10:48 am
A thoroughly nice guy and therefore a hopeless politician.
April 29th, 2008 at 10:52 am
Of course he had his safe seat pulled out from under him by that ‘back stabber ‘ Peachy.
April 29th, 2008 at 11:01 am
Actually Allan only nominated after other people have declared they would stand.
April 29th, 2008 at 11:22 am
Ok GWW3 …. so, by your reasoning Nash is a back-stabber too for having challenged Fairbrother. Clearly you are happy to have ‘back-stabber’ Nash promoted as one of your rising stars. Part of your Labour Good – National Bad mantra … no consistency, no logic (lets not even go down the strategic assets path), just blind adherance to blinkered dogma. Sorry, cuts no mustard now. The people have finally figured out that the Emperor has no clothes.
April 29th, 2008 at 11:29 am
Easy to toss brickbats at any politician. I don’t know the man however he is one person I have respect for an ability to chair a committee or as deputy speaker. He would have been an excellent speaker in the next National government. His knowledge of standing orders and his comparatively non partisan approach would stand in stark contrast to the current speaker.
The house would have been a less nasty place with Clem in the chair. The fact that he was a list MP would also put him in a situation where he would not alienate his own electorate.
He walked before he was pushed by some pushy partisan new member of parliament.
April 29th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Tim
Ive always advocated MPs should only be allowed to serve a certain time and the same for the PM.
Its now standard good corporate governance that Directors should not serve more than 3×3year terms and the same should go for MPs.
Other wise you get the staleness that we see in the House with the same old sameold and no new ideas.
April 29th, 2008 at 11:50 am
I’m with Neil, I’d thought that Clem would make an excellent Speaker in the next Parliament … way more respected, impartial and effective than Margaret Wilson.
April 29th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Redbaiter, I can easily imagine Clem Simich, or any other unsuspecting person looking like a “stunned mullet” after being subjected to one of your rants, if you were in character.
I only met Clem once, and he struck me as a decent, fair and honourable person. For these reasons I think that he was well suited to his Deputy Speaker role and may have made a good Speaker at some stage in the future. I wish him all the best in retirement.
April 29th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Mr. Simich is a thorough waste of space.
Nobody is going to cry for his departure, which is a pity didn’t happen years ago.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
GWW, having known ALlan peachey personally for a number of years, I can assure you he is a man of the utmost integrity, and would not countenance being referred to as a ‘back-stabber’! His appointment, as DPF states, took place only after others had indicated they would stand. He was appointed by a committee in an open process.
As to Clem Simich, he may well have made a good speaker, but he is now somwhat past his use-by date.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
Right none of the time.!!
Peachys letter to the Associate head of Selwyn College used the words ‘ Watch your back’.
He labels himself as a back stabber and that is with someone not in his party!
There is no doubt Peachy ( with the help of Boag and others ) made sure Clem wanted to give up Tamaki for his chance’s in mangere ( or the list)
April 29th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
And again GWW doesn’t know a fact if it bit him in the face. Peachey was selected in 2004/05 – two years after Michelle was President.
April 29th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
I’m still waiting for Clem Simich to deliver his “message to Wellington” that he promised to take when he was selected to replace Sir Robert Muldoon. While he hasn’t been anything like the complete vacuum that many MPs represent, he hasn’t exactly carved out a memorable career either. A case of over-promising and under-delivering if ever there was.
As Tim Barclay says, the political process needs fresh ideas and fresh blood. After a couple of terms Clem should have realised his “message” (if ever he had one) was never going to get through, and stepped aside. But they’re all so well remunerated and required to do so little for the money (not to say that many don’t work exceptionally hard, just that it’s possible to choose not to and still remain) that they all hang on for dear life.
April 29th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
I thought he retired years ago!