Labour and Greens gain support in poll

Labour and the Greens have gained support since the election but New Zealand First has slumped below the threshold for seats in Parliament, a new opinion poll shows.

The TV3/TNS poll last night put Labour up nearly three percentage points, on 44 per cent, compared with its election night 41.1 per cent.

National was down from 39.1 per cent to 37 per cent, and New Zealand First dropped from 5.7 per cent to 3.5 per cent on election-night comparisons.

Support for the Greens increased from 5.3 per cent to 7 per cent. There was little change to the ratings of the other minor parties.

The results indicate that voters do not have a problem with the way Prime Minister Helen Clark put her new Government together, but New Zealand First leader Winston Peters' position of Foreign Minister has hurt his party.

National's lower rating could reflect its attempted liaison with the Maori Party after the election.

Helen Clark's personal popularity is up from 38 per cent in September to 43 per cent in the preferred Prime Minister stakes, but National leader Don Brash has dropped from 23 per cent to 19 per cent.

Mr Peters is down from 10 per cent to 8 per cent.

Translated into seats in Parliament, Labour would be up from its present 50 to 54, National would lose one seat and go down to 47, and NZ First would not have any seats.

Because Mr Peters lost Tauranga, NZ First does not have an electorate seat and has to be above the 5 per cent threshold to have MPs in Parliament.

The Greens would have nine, three more than they hold, and if the poll results had been achieved by Labour and the Greens on election night they could have formed a simple two-party coalition with a strong majority.

The poll shows no change to the Maori Party's four seats, Act's two, United Future's three and the Progressives' one.

The poll questioned 1000 voters and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 per cent.

- NZPA