THE QUESTIONS
1. What do you think of the privileges committee finding that Winston Peters filed a false return? Do you think the process was fair?
2. What do you think of National leader John Key's failure to declare all his Tranz Rail shares?
3. What would swing your vote?
4. What about a fat tax carrot?
5. Is John Key PM material?
KEY POINTS:
Nutsey Avenue is an ordinary street in the Northcote electorate on Auckland's North Shore. The rule of thumb is how Northcote votes, New Zealand votes. Ten months ago, we first polled this bellwether seat to ascertain what was on voters' minds. Below are our panel's responses to our
third visit.
* Cathryn Shepherd, 37, mother of three and in part-time business, undecided but "definitely not Labour".
Winston: I definitely do not agree with him continuing in his Foreign Affairs role - it's so dishonest, so unethical [what he did]. When he spoke to the committee, all he did was try to confuse people. He slipped up but he tried to cover up.
Tranz Rail: At the time he [Key] probably felt it was going to hurt him to admit he had more shares so he wasn't up front, but at least he can now say he was wrong. It may dent him, it may make him more cautious.
Swing: Nothing [would swing me to Labour]. You'd have to have a different leader. I'm not impressed by Prime Minister Helen Clark ... it's her manner; she's quite brash.
It's not just about me and where I'm at with my family, it's got to be good for the majority of everyone living here ... if we could somehow have things made here rather than everything going offshore, and encourage our doctors and entrepreneurs to stay in New Zealand.
Tax: (Would you switch to Labour if it unveiled more generous tax-cuts?) Not really.
Key as PM? Helen Clark's got years on him but he's a fast learner. He's a new breed and he has the x-factor. Bill English didn't have enough push, John Key does.
* Rochelle McCaw, 30, administrator, National
Winston: He knows he's guilty and is trying to offset the blame. It [the hearing] was fair, well-presented.
Tranz Rail: There's always going to be some bits of information that you're going to leave out. Now it's election year, everything is under the microscope. I don't think it's a big deal [that Key didn't initially declare all the shares]. He handled it well.
Key for PM: In most respects, yes. He's got leadership skills. I'm banking on him to step up more. He's got lots of potential, but is a bit of an unknown.
Swing: If another Winston Peters happened to John Key, that would make me think twice.
Tax: No, because Labour hasn't done anything for me, it would be too late.
* Prashant Pradhan, strategy manager, 33, National.
Winston: It really hurt his credibility. Helen Clark talks about ethics; if she was really ethical about this, when he's proved wrong, she should say we're going to act accordingly.
Tranz Rail: If he [Key] had used the knowledge he was getting as a parliamentarian to trade the shares that would be wrong, but from what I've read since, his trader was dealing outside his knowledge. The issue should have been brought up when it happened, not played as a trump card in election year.
Key for PM: With the way the credit-crunch is going, given his background in investment banking, he'll be more intuitively attuned to managing the economy rather than having to depend on other people advising him.
Swing: If John Key's credibility was beaten up, something like the Winston Peters saga - I don't think Tranz Rail was that bad - that would swing me.
Tax: It wouldn't completely change my mind but I would be inclined to reconsider. How big would the tax cuts have to be? [Laughs] No tax!
* Matthew Shepherd, 36, psychological researcher, undecided.
Winston: It didn't surprise me. I watched his response on TV3 - that just went round in circles. I guess it was a fair process. If anyone was going to survive that it would be Winston.
Tranz Rail: It doesn't look good; he [Key] should have been truthful about it. It's a bit of a worry, because if that's happened, what else has gone down without the public knowing?
Key for PM: Maybe by default: the majority seems to want a change. We still don't know too much about how he will handle a lot of things.
Swing: If a party came out and said it wanted to invest heavily in early childhood education and other family policies, I might be swayed.
The gang stuff [proposed new laws to effectively outlaw gangs] is a knee-jerk reaction. We've got to look at what we're doing for families in need. We know there are risk signs for children as early as kindergarten. As a society, in a sense, we contributed to the gang problem.
Tax: It would add to my choice, but it wouldn't be the final consideration.
* Jan Claris, 38, runs a party hire business, Labour
Winston: Something more should have come of it. Even though I don't mind Winnie, I think he's pushed the envelope too far this time. There don't seem to be any consequences. It was fair, but I don't think it was done in the proper way - the Serious Fraud Office should have done an investigation first before airing it in public.
Tranz Rail: My biggest reason for not trusting National is there always seems to be something like this that happens. Now John Key says, I had more shares, sorry I forget about that. How many times is he going to say that if he gets in? Well, sorry, I forgot what I said about the tax cuts. I think he's just a poster boy for National.
Key for PM: For having the gift of the gab, probably yes; but for someone you can trust, no. I'd even come closer to trusting Winnie before I trust him. I don't think his idea of getting rid of the Maori seats is a good idea - you're going to cause more division and strife.
Swing: Probably nothing. You hear about people complaining about the size of Labour's tax cuts, but over a year that's nearly a grand, that's not small money when you look at it over the scale of nearly four million people.
Tax: It would have to be massive - they'd have to write-off small business tax debts! But you get all these promises before the election; whether they come to fruition is another story.
* Robin Romein, 34, runs internet business, Greens.
Winston: Even though he hasn't picked up his duties as a minister, he's still in Parliament. You're doing something that's not legal and you're still able to influence the running of the country. How is the Government able to act on really important issues if they can't act on this one properly?
Tranz Rail: I don't trust him because he was involved in debating the Tranz Rail transaction and it suddenly turned out that he could have had a personal interest. He wants to run the country and he doesn't know what his personal financial situation is?
Key for PM: No, because he acts from his own point of view and for his own personal gains, or the gains of the people who fund his campaign, and not the normal person on the street.
Swing: If someone would stand up and give a clear, long-term vision with enough evidence to back it, then I would go for that party. Only the Greens have a vision - for a greener world for our children.
Tax: Only if it was part of a long-term vision. The tax policy National is putting forward would only put the country further in debt. Under the current tax system, the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. I'm up for paying more taxes if it will get a better health system, better infrastructure and if it will help people.
