Campaign takes another turn as NZ First ruled out of coalition

3.00pm

With eight days to go until the election, the campaign took another twist today with Prime Minister Helen Clark ruling New Zealand First out as a coalition partner as she battles to win enough votes to govern with only Jim Anderton's help.

Miss Clark said today she would rather run a minority government than have NZ First leader Winston Peters in it.

Polls this week have put Labour on about 46 per cent, meaning it would not win a majority even with Mr Anderton. His Progressive Coalition party has little support in the polls so he would be its only MP. Mr Anderton holds the safe seat of Wigram.

According to the polls, Labour's other likely coalition partners would be the Greens or NZ First.

United Future leader Peter Dunne, safe in Ohariu-Belmont, has also emerged as a contender for coalition after highly publicised performances on TV debates. His party needs to reach around 1.2 per cent to get a second MP.

Miss Clark has previously said the Greens have ruled themselves out of coalition over their stance to neither go into coalition with Labour nor support any government that allows the moratorium on the release of genetically engineered organisms to expire next October.

After previously labelling some of Mr Peters' policies anathema to Labour, Miss Clark went further yesterday, attacking the NZ First leader for practising the "politics of division".

Also yesterday, in a speech to a union conference, Mr Anderton said he found "it extremely difficult to believe either Labour or myself will ever trust Winston Peters" and accused Mr Peters of running a "racist campaign".

Joining the chorus against Mr Peters was Council of Trade Unions president Ross Wilson who said the organisation's support for a Labour-led government would not extend to one that included Mr Peters.

Miss Clark says her preferences are to run a majority government or if the numbers do not stack up, a minority one, and in each case Mr Anderton will be in it.

Asked today on National Radio if she would rather run a minority government than go into coalition with Mr Peters, she said: "That's absolutely what I'm saying."

Asked what this meant for the Greens, a spokesman for Miss Clark told NZPA "her two preferences remain" -- for a majority or minority Government with Mr Anderton.

Mr Peters today said his party was being attacked because it was looking like it would be "a very important player in this election".

Miss Clark must believe her attacks will not have the same effect as former prime minister Jenny Shipley's attacks did for the Greens at the last election. The Greens said Mrs Shipley's attacks on them in 1999 helped them get more votes.

- NZPA

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