Labour may go alone in a minority government says Clark

By VERNON SMALL

If Labour does not win enough seats to rule alone, Helen Clark may run a minority government rather than form a coalition with the Greens or New Zealand First.

The Prime Minister indicated yesterday that neither party was a good "fit" on current policies.

"You are dealing with parties which are quixotic, if I can put it that way.

"New Zealand First ... does support economic growth, trade and the superannuation fund," Helen Clark said, "but on the other hand you have got a party which has views on immigration and race relations which are anathema to Labour."

In 1996, New Zealand First also disagreed with Labour on issues such as income-related state house rentals and industrial relations.

"With the Greens ... you run up against the fact that they don't like economic growth, trade or the superannuation fund," the Prime Minister said, "and they attribute an importance to GE which is just out of all proportion to its true importance."

The Greens favour "environmentally sustainable" economic growth and fair trade, but they have pledged to bring down any government which does not extend the moratorium on commercial release of genetically modified organisms. It expires in October next year.

NZ First leader Winston Peters has said he will not make a commitment to a coalition until he sees the July 27 election results.

Helen Clark said neither party might be a suitable coalition partner.

"And then you come back to other scenarios. You have to admit that Labour could be encouraged to think it didn't need either of them as a coalition partner."

Labour has averaged more than 50 per cent backing in recent polls.

It has operated for the past term as a minority Government supported by either the Greens or NZ First on critical issues.

"We have shown we can work with such parties and that's what happens when you don't have a good fit for coalition," said Helen Clark.

Greens co-leader Rod Donald said his party had backed Government policies much more often than Mr Peters. It had also voted for all three Budgets.

Helen Clark said she was now in campaign mode trying to maximise Labour's vote "so we are not held to ransom by small and unrepresentative parties".

She was not ruling the Greens out of a coalition but through their stance on GE they had effectively ruled themselves out.

The Greens' annual conference in Auckland this month suggested offering support to Labour on confidence and money supply in exchange for specific policy "wins".

Helen Clark said that was possible, and it could be better than a coalition.

"We started work on a protocol for relations [with the Greens] and Labour was very happy where it got to but the Alliance didn't like it. I would be prepared to work on that again."

That still left the issue of the Greens bringing the Government down over GE.

"It has to be a crunch election around whether a small party gets a veto power on what the Government is over a single issue," said Helen Clark.

She rejected claims by Greens co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons that she was out of step with her own Labour supporters.

Helen Clark said a National Business Review poll had shown support for the "cautionary" approach favoured by Labour.

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