The public should decide on a four-year term, not the government: national deputy

National says that the decision to extend the parliamentary and local elections to four years must be decided by the public and not by the government in office.

As part of the confidence agreement between the Labor Party and the Greens confirmed today, the Government also states that it wants to work with political parties throughout Parliament, including the Opposition, on issues affecting democracy, including the length of the parliamentary term. , recommended the 2012 Electoral Commission changes to the MMP and the electoral financing law.

But National’s election law spokesman, Dr. Nick Smith, said that while National was open to extending it, he cautioned that the election law should not be a “game” and that the decision should be made by the public.

“National is open to extending the term to four years for parliamentary and local elections, but the decision must be made by New Zealand voters through a referendum, not just MPs.”

During the second leaders’ debate in the run-up to the October elections, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and national leader Judith Collins said they supported moving from a three- to four-year term.

New Zealand, along with Australia, currently has one of the shortest parliamentary terms in the world, with countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom serving four-year terms.

“Any additional changes such as the current 5 percent threshold or the one-seat rule should not be changed without broad consensus. These rules were established with a 100 percent consensus of Parliament when the MMP was established in 1995,” Smith said. .

Smith said Labor and the Greens must remember that any major change in New Zealand’s electoral law must have broad public support.

“The concern with this announcement is that the new government is prioritizing its own interests and modifying electoral laws for the upcoming elections than on the big problems New Zealand faces in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, speaking about the agreement today, Ardern said he wanted an inter-parliamentary consultation on constitutional issues, and those issues are normally put to the electorate in a referendum.

As part of the agreement between Labor and the Greens, the Green Party agrees to support the Labor government by not opposing votes on issues of trust and supply throughout the term of this Parliament, but may abstain from voting.