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Tea behind closed doors for Banks and Key

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Thu, 01 Dec 2011 1:04p.m.

Banks and Key - and a radio mic

Banks and Key - and a radio mic

More meetings between Prime Minister John Key and minor party MPs are expected on Thursday, as National moves to set up a new government.

Mr Key met with the leaders of ACT, United Future and the Maori Party on Monday to begin bashing out supply and confidence deals.

He's hopeful of wrapping up agreements with ACT and United Future within days, while the Maori Party hold hui, or meetings, with its members before deciding whether to continue supporting the National-led government.

Mr Key is expected to meet with ACT MP John Banks and United Future leader Peter Dunne in Wellington on Thursday afternoon.

The ACT Party board met on Wednesday night, for further discussions on what it wanted from a supply and confidence deal with National.

Mr Banks told NZ Newswire the agreement would have to build on the deal the party reached in 2008.

That included establishing the 2025 Taskforce to investigate closing the gap with Australia, National's support for ACT's three-strikes legislation, and two ministerial portfolios.

"Eighty percent of what we've already discussed, we can tick off quickly," Mr Banks said.

"But there'll be 20 percent at the margins that is important to the ACT Party, because we are underpinned by certain values that we want represented in any such agreement."

Each party is expected to be offered ministerial portfolios.

Mr Dunne is likely to continue as revenue minister, while Mr Banks could receive a business-related role.

Maori Party co-leader Pita Sharples is expected to retain the Maori affairs portfolio.

NZN

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Comments

02 Dec 2011 01:43a.m.

Chargone wrote:

garesh: people follow that logic all the time anyway. similar things lead to national doing as well as it does. people are too busy being 'clever' and voting 'strategically'. if they actually voted for what they WANTED we'd be a lot better off. (and honestly, if the current arrangement is actually what a majority of the NZ public WANTED then it's a good argument for the abolition of parliament. it's not like we'd be all That much worse off with the GG running things directly.... they never do a damn thing anyway!)

01 Dec 2011 03:59p.m.

garesh wrote:

key made a giant blunder in backing banks and dunne, he would have have an outright majority but his ego got in the way.
a disgrace how this manipulation of an election was allowed, surely the election commission should have warned key that this is morrally wrong, the people of nz should demand that a PM should leave the voting to the people as a democracy demands.

01 Dec 2011 02:34p.m.

Bruce wrote:

Unfortunately it has to be behind closed doors. When they tried transparency someone taped him and tried to stab him in the back. Best to do these things behind doors eh? Don't worry Homer Banks, is a pseudo National MP and Epsom knows this so no worries eh boy?

01 Dec 2011 01:15p.m.

Homer wrote:

What a joke the people of Epsom voting in Banks - a man they don't even like. Now they are stuck with him and it's scary to think what he will ruin while in government.