Beehive Diaries: How to win a Covid meat pack

Dr Ayesha Verrall has avoided Covid so far. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Mr LunchMoney

It's been many years since honorifics disappeared from most mainstream media style guides. Gone are the days when one might see the Prime Minister and her deputy referred to as Ms Ardern and Mr Robertson.

Somebody forgot to mention this to Mr Christopher Luxon, leader of the National Party, who reintroduced them during a lukewarm speech on the Government's GST flip-flop this week. Luxon was trying to lean into his professed fandom of the singer LunchMoney Lewis, whose hit "Bills" Luxon was caught singing to TVNZ.

In Luxon's hands, LunchMoney Lewis, real name Gamal Kosh Lewis, became the slightly grandiose "Mr LunchMoney".

Alas, despite Mr LunchMoney's Hansard honorific, he still has bills that he has to pay and must work, work, work, every day.

Parliamentary poetry

Last month, Revenue Minister David Parker deflected questions over the cost of living payment going to dead people by reading a poem from James K. Baxter which mused on the nature of mortality.

Not to be outdone, Nicola Willis, who took an honours paper on Baxter at university, returned the favour in Question Time on Thursday.

With Parker under pressure over the GST flip-flop, she quoted Baxter's "The Bay".

"How many roads we take that lead to Nowhere,

"The alley overgrown, no meaning now but loss?"

Parker, not only a fan of Baxter, but also something of a music buff, explained the U-turn with a quote of his own - not from Baxter, but from the musician Kenny Rogers:

"You've got to know when to hold 'em,

"Know when to fold 'em"

Verrall and Wood close in on the meat pack

James Shaw's infection means there are just two ministers left not to have been infected with Covid 19: Covid 19 Response Minister Ayesha Verrall and Transport Minister Michael Wood. Verrall's background as an infectious diseases expert perhaps explains her resilience, but Wood's lucky break is more difficult to explain given his passion for public transport.

As the numbers of uninfected ministers have dwindled, some in the Press Gallery took out bets on who would be the last minister standing.

The ministers, at first confused about the solicitousness, eventually found out who was backing them.

After Shaw's result, Wood tweeted his backer, NZ Herald political editor Claire Trevett: "Do not worry Claire, my vitals remain strong. The meat pack/Moore Wilson's voucher is almost within reach."

Newstalk ZB's Jason Walls is backing Verrall.

We wish both ministers well as they close in on this glory. [But we wish Wood a little bit more well – political editor]

Quote of the Week

"That was a poorly timed Mentos," Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern after deciding to eat a mint while on a live stream.