Winston rules out Hipkins

The Herald reports:

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters wants to make it very clear: he won’t be working with Labour after the election if the party is still led by Chris Hipkins. …

“When I ruled out Hipkins in 2023, I ruled him out permanently,” Peters said (he actually ruled out Labour in November 2022, three months before Hipkins became leader).

In other words, barring a leadership change in Labour, it looks like the only conceivable grouping Peters would consider after the election will be something on the right.

This is very very significant, even if not surprising.

This means the only practical way for Chris Hipkins to become Prime Minister (again) is by agreements with Te Pati Maori and the Greens. He can’t rely on just one of them – he needs both. There have been 55 public polls since the last election and not a single on of them shows Labour able to govern just with the Greens. Even if TPM abstained, not one of them shows Labour and Greens could form a Government. They must get the support of Te Pati Maori to have a chance at government.

The three parties of the right should and must spend all of election year making clear that a vote for Labour will be a vote for Te Pati Maori to be in Government (and for some of the Greens $88 billion in new taxes).