The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country

Listen: Shane Ardern - MMP has created a 'coalition of the losers'

The Country
24 Oct, 2017 02:12 AMQuick Read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Shane Ardern (back in 2003), talking to the press after driving Myrtle the tractor up the steps of parliament. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Shane Ardern (back in 2003), talking to the press after driving Myrtle the tractor up the steps of parliament. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Former National Party MP for Taranaki-King Country Shane Ardern is no fan of MMP or the election result. This could prove awkward at family gatherings as he's also Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's distant cousin.

Shane is perhaps most famous for driving Myrtle the tractor up the steps of Parliament in 2003 as a protest against the proposed "Fart Tax." The Country's Jamie Mackay wonders if agriculture being introduced into the Emissions Trading Scheme could spur Ardern into revving Myrtle up again?

Ardern is unhappy with MMP, saying it has become "totally non-democratic" and the current government is a "coalition of the losers."

Also in today's interview: Shane talks about how MMP is bad for rural New Zealand and what a centre-left government means for farming.

Listen to the full interview in the Soundcloud embed below:

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save
    Share this article

Latest from The Country

The Country

NZ red meat exports continue to achieve high values

Premium
The Country

Whitebait wars: Spots secured weeks before season opened, crackdown on illegal squats

The Country

Drinking from the roof - water worries in 1877


Sponsored

Kiwi campaign keeps on giving

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

NZ red meat exports continue to achieve high values
The Country

NZ red meat exports continue to achieve high values

Meat Industry Association CEO Sirma Karapeeva said the EU was a standout market.

07 Sep 10:20 PM
Premium
Premium
Whitebait wars: Spots secured weeks before season opened, crackdown on illegal squats
The Country

Whitebait wars: Spots secured weeks before season opened, crackdown on illegal squats

07 Sep 02:00 AM
Drinking from the roof - water worries in 1877
The Country

Drinking from the roof - water worries in 1877

06 Sep 05:00 PM


Kiwi campaign keeps on giving
Sponsored

Kiwi campaign keeps on giving

07 Sep 12:00 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP