The Smacking Bill is not being rushed through Parliament because NZ First is split on the issue, Deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen said today.
Dr Cullen revealed the Government ditched a plan to push the Bill through Parliament on urgency because of its reliance on Winston Peter's party.
He said: "We were getting clear indications from New Zealand First that it was causing a lot of internal ructions for them.
"Our relationship with New Zealand First is more important than pushing the issue of moving the motion."
Fears about getting the numbers to pass the Bill was not behind the decision, he said. But National leader John Key said Labour had failed to persuade its own MPs as well as the public to back the anti-smacking legislation.
New Zealand First deputy leader Peter Brown, whose party was to have discussed the urgency proposal today, said Dr Cullen had contacted him yesterday afternoon to say he was no longer seeking support for the urgency motion.
NZ First and the Maori Party had planned to discuss the issue at their caucus meetings because Dr Cullen would have needed the Maori Party's four MPs and at least one NZ First MP to get that motion passed.
The Maori Party supports the bill but NZ First is split on it -- with two of its MPs supporting the legislation. Its president Dail Jones has threatened those two MPs with poor list rankings ahead of the next election if they continue to back it.
The bill is a conscience issue, although Labour's MPs are voting along party lines.
Mr Brown said it was a "relief" his party no longer needed to consider the urgency motion as it would have been a difficult discussion.
Dr Cullen had not been guaranteed support for the move when he first proposed it.
"I think he thought his position through and decided it was not worth the anguish."
The bill's next debate follows two polls yesterday that showed most New Zealanders do not agree with the legislation.
A One News/Colmar Brunton poll found 83 per cent believe in smacking children while 15 per cent disagree.
A Research New Zealand poll found nearly three-quarters opposed the bill and believed it was unenforceable.
Ms Bradford's bill is designed to change the Crimes Act and remove the defence of "reasonable force" against assault on a child.
National MP Chester Borrows has proposed an amendment to define reasonable force to allow parents to lightly smack their child to punish them.
Mr Borrows said not having urgency would put pressure on Labour MPs.
"It can only put pressure on Labour, it certainly doesn't put pressure on us, we're on the right side of this debate," he told Radio New Zealand.
- NEWSTALK ZB, NZPA
