Tense Jones brings down the house

Shane Jones, David Cunliffe and Grant Robertson at last night's Labour leadership hui in Whangarei. Photo / Ron Burgin

The making of history sometimes unfolds at a different pace to the urgency of a moment, as happened in Whangarei last night when the three Labour leadership contestants came to the party.

As can almost be expected in Northland, there was a late start for the first-ever Labour - or any political party's - leadership debate held in Whangarei.

Much of that was due to a protracted throng of greeting and meeting in the foyer as first Grant Robertson, then David Cunliffe and lastly Shane Jones arrived at Forum North.

Grant Robertson was first through the door; looking quite relaxed, carrying a takeaway coffee. Regional economic development was Northland's biggest, most urgent need, Robertson told this reporter, and later the packed house during the debate.

"Any Labour Party that I lead would focus on regional development. We will be focussing on jobs but there is no silver bullet.

Whatever we do in the way of job creation and economic development has to be sustainable. Some options we might not be able to support because they are not sustainable."

Northland's potential lay in building local industries that added value to local primary produce, for example timber, Robertson said.

David Cunliffe arrived next, offering his presidential style, long-reach handshake to the Party's welcoming party.

He, too, stopped to answer questions, launching into a round of old-fashioned Labour talk that would dispel any suspicions he was a John Key clone in a red tie.

Regional development was also top of his agenda.

"Get the railway to Northport, fix the rail tunnels from here to Auckland, that in itself will create jobs. Get a strategy in place where Northland, Auckland and Tauranga ports all work together.

"We need central government intervention to ensure the infrastructure is in place for the regions to use, that's one way to boost regional economies."

Reminded that once-upon-a-short-time former prime minister Mike Moore, who grew up in Kawakawa, had also talked like a red flag waving man of the people, Cunliffe said he himself was strongly social democrat. It's back to the future for the Labour Party, he inferred.

"But more along the lines of Michael Savage than Michael Moore. 2013 is a lot like 1933, we've weathered a depression and New Zealand today needs a new government who cares about jobs and people and putting food on tables of the poor."

Of them all, Shane Jones looked the most tense, but had the biggest welcome from his supporters. As the local politician among the three, he led the others into the powhiri, with former Northland Maori Labour MP Dover Samuels at his side.

Jones had put on hold the question of how useful he had found a Ngati Hau hui concerned with regional development on Friday; possibly the Labour spokesperson on regional development was not fobbing off the question - he needed to accommodate another round of hongi and hugs.

His famous rhetoric was to be saved for the debate that would be held behind closed doors for the party faithful and the affiliated unions' delegates.