National still open to Act deal

By BERNARD ORSMAN

The National Party is not ruling out a deal with Act in the Epsom or Tamaki electorates if it looks like Act will fall short of the 5 per cent threshold for list seats in Parliament.

A deal would see National supporters being urged to give their constituency vote to the Act candidate in Epsom, Rodney Hide, or the Act candidate in Tamaki, Ken Shirley.

The high-risk strategy threatens the political careers of National's Epsom and Tamaki MPs, Richard Worth and Clem Simich.

However, the chances of a deal are fading after recent polls showing that support for Act has lifted above 5 per cent. Today's Herald-DigiPoll survey puts Act on 5.7 per cent, up from 4.4 per cent last Wednesday.

The latest One News/Colmar Brunton poll put Act on 5 per cent.

Scott Simpson, the National Party northern divisional chairman, said yesterday that the prospect of a deal with Act in Epsom or Tamaki was remote.

Asked if National was ruling out a deal altogether, Mr Simpson said: "I'm absolutely ruling it out as we speak. But the old saying, 'A week is a long time in politics', is very true. If you ask me the question again a week out from the election I'd answer on the basis of the knowledge and information I had at that point."

In an election-eve endorsement of Act in Wellington Central in 1996, Prime Minister Jim Bolger kneecapped his own candidate, Mark Thomas, to help Richard Prebble to win. National also stood aside in Wellington Central in 1999 in favour of Mr Prebble and in Ohariu-Belmont to help United Future leader Peter Dunne.

National has never urged supporters to vote for another candidate against a sitting National MP.

Act president Catherine Judd confirmed there had been talks with the National Party about a deal in Auckland but said no agreements had been made.

She said Act was already polling 5 per cent or better in the polls and had no plans to do anything desperate.

"Our whole strategy means we are going for the party vote. It's a very clear, unambiguous message. As Richard Prebble said, 'Our people want to go in the front door'."

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