Independent Electoral Panel delivers wishlist for the left

It is perhaps no surprise that a panel hand picked by Labour and Greens has delivered a report recommending massive electoral changes that would benefit them.

I wanted to give the panel some benefit of the doubt, and did a submission myself, asking to be heard. I never was a asked to appear, which is surprising for someone who has written extensively on electoral issues for over 20 years.

Here are their key recommendations:

• Entrench Treaty principles in the Electoral Act
• Lower threshold to 3.5%
• Abolish electorate seat threshold
• Fix ratio of electorate: list seats to be 60:40 so Parliament size increases as number of electorates grows
• Referendum on a four year term
• No fixed election date
• Abolish Waka-jumping law
• Lower voting age to 16
• Allow all prisoners the vote
• Allow Maori to change rolls up to any including on election day
• Ban donations of over $30,000 and increase taxpayer funding of parties to around $6 million per electoral cycle
• Ban donations from companies and unions

Pretty much every cause championed by the left has been recommended. In theory I should welcome this report because it would be amazing for the Taxpayers’ Union. If donations over $30,000 are banned, then we would become like the United States (where donations are capped at $2,300) with PACs becoming mega-powerful and bundlers turning up everywhere. It amazes me that people who claim to be worried about the influence of money in politics always recommend a US style donation system.

The proposed changes to the threshold are interesting to look at, based on what would have happened in the past if they had been in place then.

• 1996: Christian Coalition would have gained five seats giving potential balance of power to Rev Graham Cahill, now known to be a pedophile as National and NZ First would no longer have a majority
• 1999: no change
• 2002: Anderton’s Party doesn’t get a 2nd MP. Doesn’t impact overall outcome
• 2005: United loses two List MPs and ACT one List MP.
• 2008: NZ First remain in Parliament with five MPs. National and Act would no longer have a majority
• 2011: no change
• 2014: Colin Craig would hold balance of power with five MPs, Māori Party lose a List MP
• 2017: no change
• 2020: Māori Party lose a List MP

So what the panel recommends would have seen Rev Capill and Colin Craig both holding the balance of power.

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