KEY POINTS:
United Future Leader Peter Dunne has warned Labour to stop casting "wandering eyes" at the Greens or face "major problems".
United Future has supported the Labour-led Government on confidence and supply votes for the past two terms.
But in a speech to the Tawa Bowling Club tonight, Mr
Dunne compared Labour to a wayward spouse and said it had to be careful about how closely it worked with the Greens.
"While we have been able to advance many of our key policy objectives through these agreements and overall play a far more constructive and positive role than many other parties in Parliament, we still see Labour's eyes drifting towards the Greens, the party it has jilted three time at the altar already," Mr Dunne said.
"To use the analogy of a marriage, there comes a time in even the most stable and productive of relationships when the wandering eye of one partner ceases to be just an annoyance and becomes a major problem."
He said if Labour wanted to continue working with United Future it needed to "be saying so clearly, and working from now to make it happen".
NZPA understands the comments were not meant to be threatening, but a reminder that MMP relationships should be managed over the entire term of government.
Any speculation that Mr Dunne was thinking of quitting his support arrangement would be ill-informed, NZPA was told.
Mr Dunne may just be publicly flexing his muscles, but the comments come as Labour is low in the polls and also has a more difficult time passing legislation due to defections.
Former United Future MP Gordon Copeland defected and became an independent because he opposed smacking laws.
He joined former Labour MP Taito Phillip Field as independent, making it that bit more difficult for Prime Minister Helen Clark to get non-confidence legislation through the house.
Mr Dunne's speech follows Green co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons trying to squeeze concessions over a proposed regional fuel tax.
The Greens want all or a large part of it to fund public transport, whereas Mr Dunne wants the money for a new motorway into Wellington, known as Transmission Gully.
If the Government wants to pass the regional tax legislation then the easiest way to get the numbers is to get the agreement of New Zealand First and United Future.
Mr Dunne said he was not criticising the Greens, which United Future had been developing a constructive relationship with, but Labour.
"It is not good enough to treat support parties as toys on the shelf, to be picked up and dusted off as needed, and then dumped unceremoniously once a new game comes along."
Some in the Beehive are openly surprised by Mr Dunne's speech as the recent budget gave him many policy wins and did not even mention the Greens once.
Beehive staffers said Mr Dunne still had a good working relationship with Prime Minister Helen Clark and her deputy Michael Cullen.
Ms Fitzsimons said she was puzzled by the speech and she did not feel marriage was a correct analogy to use for the political relationship between a very large party and a very small party.
The Green Party had every right to negotiate on the basis of its six votes, compared to United Future's two.
She pointed out that Mr Dunne was a minister in the Government and wondered whether it was appropriate for him to openly court the National Party in the speech.
But Mr Dunne also had some harsh words for National.
He said the party was still an unknown quantity -- "a combination of a new and untried leader, and all too tried and found out deputy leader".
Mr Dunne said it was not clear at times whether Mr Key or Mr English was calling the shots.
He said he preferred Mr Key and claimed Mr English had been telling private audiences National was more likely to form a government with the Maori Party after the next election rather than United Future and New Zealand First.
Mr Dunne said such talk was an "arrogant dismissal" of United Future and NZ First.
He said United Future had the credentials to provide stable government in league with either main party.
"We remain committed to working in government with the major party best able at the time to ensure we can implement our major policies.
He said if National United Future's support it needed "to be working now to develop that to the point where people can see a viable government arrangement emerging".
- NZPA