Baublewatch: Eye on Winston

A delegate's idea of a joke. Picture / Alan Gibson

Foreign Minister Winston Peters said during the election campaign that he did not seek the petty baubles of office in any future government. This occasional column will note the "baubles" Mr Peters accumulates in his new, controversial role outside the Cabinet.

1. Base salary up from $120,000 as a minor party leader to $171,600 for minister outside Cabinet.

2. Access to ministerial cars.

3. Qualifies for a VIP diplomatic passport.

4. Overseas trips to Korea (last week) and Malta and the UK (this week).

5. A trophy photograph for his wall of him in the background of an international line-up with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.