Luxon's MMP referendum blindsides coalition partners and MPs, accused of 'power grab'

Christopher Luxon says he supports having another referendum on the MMP voting system if he’s re-elected as he encourages greater support for National so the party can avoid working with “some yahoo and numpty” in Cabinet. 

Act leader David Seymour says he’s not opposed to another referendum but suggests Luxon “may not have thought through what he’s saying” regarding ministers from other parties, noting the number of National ministers who had been dismissed this term. 

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters says the referendum proposal is “inexplicable” and a “power grab” as he claims Labour and National are “losing their grip on power”. 

The Herald understands Luxon’s announcement came as a surprise to National MPs. The Herald has approached the National Party for comment. 

Speaking on Newstalk ZB this morning, Luxon made the statement in response to a listener who had texted in asking whether the PM would address the power held by minor parties in governing arrangements. 

Luxon initially pointed to the Government working towards a referendum on whether to extend government terms from three years to four, before saying he was “open” to asking voters whether they were “still supportive of MMP”. 

Asked if he would do so if he were Prime Minister next year, Luxon replied: “Yeah, I think I would.” 

He added: “I think I would because I actually think, you know, that it is quite right to check in constitutionally and say, is this the system, New Zealand, you still want? 

“You know, you voted for this in the 90s, we’ve had a check-in in the [20]10s, 20 years down the road or whatever it has been, is it still where you want to be?” 

• Luxon says he's 'open' to holding a referendum on MMP if re-elected

Christopher Luxon was taking calls on ZB this morning when he made his comments. Photo / Michael Craig 

Luxon went on to talk about his 20-person Cabinet, currently made up of ministers from National, Act and New Zealand First. 

He argued the best way to provide a “strong and stable government” was to have as many National ministers in Cabinet as possible. 

“When you have to form coalition governments, you don’t have the same values, you don’t have the same policies, you’re not talking to the same people. 

“You try and find the common ground and I feel like I have done the best I can in two and a half years to find common ground on the economy, law and order, education and health. 

“I think you’ve got to ask the question, I feel like I’ve got responsible, sensible ministers delivering: Mark Mitchell, Todd McCay, Erica Stanford Nicola Willis, Simeon Brown, Chris Bishop, you know, I’ve got amazing people doing incredible work who take it very seriously. 

“The question is, I keep saying, I don’t need some yahoo or numpty from some other party around that table, I can do a lot more to get the centre-right agenda, centre being the operative word, done and out the door so think about your vote, November 7, it’s important.” 

Asked if his current coalition partners were yahoos and numpties, Luxon replied: “No, I’m just saying I can do better with National Party ministers, I think New Zealand’s better served by that.” 

Asked by ZB host Kerre Woodham if he’d prefer Mitchell around the Cabinet table over former National MP and current NZ First candidate Michael Laws, Luxon replied: “You said it.” 

Act leader David Seymour defended the work of his ministers. Photo / Mark Mitchell 

Speaking to the Herald, Seymour said he wasn’t certain whether Luxon was calling his ministers yahoos and numpties. 

“Who knows, I suspect that he’s being a bit free-wheeling and may not have thought through what he’s saying there.” 

Seymour noted how several National ministers had been dismissed during this term before pointing to work achieved by Act ministers, including on school attendance and reforms concerning the Holidays Act, Arms Act and the Resource Management Act. 

“I’m not here to start bagging other parties’ ministers but I think anyone who’s an objective observer would say that Act ministers have been pretty effective.” 

On a referendum, Seymour said he wasn’t opposed but said any change would be unlikely to be implemented until the 2032 or 2035 elections and there were “more urgent problems” to address. 

In a statement on social media, Peters commended MMP for having “broke the stranglehold” of Labour and National on “running roughshod over our economy without social licence”. 

“Now that the two old parties are losing their grip on power, they want to change the electoral system to favour their falling fortunes.” 

Referencing the previous referendums in 1993 and 2011, Peters said people wanted different representation in Parliament than what Labour and National could provide. 

“The old parties’ weak and inept attitude to economic sovereignty, immigration, and woke nonsense has seen people move to a party that is offering common sense, patriotism, and old-fashioned Kiwi values. 

“Shutting down and taking away true democratic representation from the people of New Zealand should be seen for what it is – a power grab and an ignorance for what it means to be a democracy.” 

Adam Pearse is the deputy political editor and part of the NZ Herald’s press gallery team based at Parliament in Wellington. He has worked for NZME since 2018, reporting for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei and the Herald in Auckland.