KEY POINTS:
Outgoing National Party leader Don Brash and John Key had discussed changing the party leadership within the next six months, Dr Brash said today.
Dr Brash cut that time span yesterday, when he resigned at short notice, catching many in the party by surprise.
"He made no secret
at all of the fact that in due course he wanted to be leader," Dr Brash said.
"I respected that. He's more than 20 years younger and I didn't feel in the least bit threatened by that."
The pair had talked several times before the last election and since about the long-term future, although nothing as specific as a managed handover had been discussed.
"We had had a discussion about whether or not some kind of change might make sense within the next six months but there was nothing very specific about that, it was a fairly general discussion."
Dr Brash told National Radio there had been ongoing speculation that he would be rolled or dumped in the New Year, or even pre-Christmas.
Mr Key "had very strong support and there's very strong support for a change".
Dr Brash said he had decided it was damaging to the party to resist that to "the last moment".
Shortly after Dr Brash announced his resignation yesterday, Mr Key said he was putting his name forward for the position.
He was believed to be so far ahead in the race for the leadership that he could be elected unopposed at a special caucus on Monday.
National's deputy Gerry Brownlee has endorsed Mr Key.
"When the votes are cast, my vote will be cast for John Key," Mr Brownlee said today.
Another possible contender is Bill English who has said he will talk it over with his family before deciding whether to put his name forward.
Mr English said his top priority was to ensure National had an experienced and united team ready to form the next government.
Dr Brash's dignified exit offered the party a rare chance to unite behind a successor.
Dr Brash said he had been thinking about stepping down for several weeks and "by last weekend I decided it was time to go and I planned it for the end of this week".
He almost put it off when he heard about Nicky Hager's book The Hollow Men but decided "there's no right time, I should go when I plan to go".
This was not because he was worried about its contents but because it would look as if he was resigning as a result of the book, Dr Brash said.
He said there had been "number counting" by leadership contenders when he experienced personal difficulties a few months ago.
Some had thought then he was going to throw in the towel and had wanted to be well-positioned to take over.
"So there was some number counting, the head counting, which went on at that point. That's not surprising at all, I didn't regard that as sinister."
"I've said on a number of occasions that there are three, four even five people on the front bench of the National Party who've got the potential to be my successor...," Dr Brash said today.
That was one of the strengths of the party at the moment "and I take some credit for that".
Mr Key does not have unanimous support from National's front bench and there could be attempts to persuade another contender to stand just to show Mr Key he was not going to have it all his own way.
Dr Brash's former chief of staff, Richard Long, said last night he personally believed Mr Key was "miles ahead" of any other potential candidate.
He said he had heard there was a move afoot to have Mr Key elected unopposed.
"That would be remarkable if it comes off...but it could happen," he said.
There also could be a contest for the deputy leadership role, currently held by Mr Brownlee.
National welfare spokesman Judith Collins today said she had been asked by colleagues to put her name forward and would decide whether to do so after talking to family and other colleagues.
"I've certainly been approached by some colleagues to put my name forward towards the deputy leadership. It's not something I had been planning to do but I'm going to consider it," Mrs Collins said.
"I'm going to consider it after I've talked to some other colleagues and my family. Whether or not that goes forward is another matter."
- NZPA