Elections 2020: Sir John Key’s resounding no to the cannabis referendum

Former Prime Minister Sir John Key has spoken out against the cannabis referendum, saying it was “nonsense” to think that marijuana legalization would spell the end of gangs.

And he has defended national leader Judith Collins, telling Mike Hosking of Newstalk ZB today that he was doing “really, really well” despite the campaign setbacks.

On the cannabis referendum, Key said he would vote against it.

“The objective of a referendum, it is true, is to give people the opportunity to express their opinion.

“Whether you want to vote yes or no for cannabis, it basically doesn’t matter if Jacinda Ardern is voting one way or another, you will make your own decision.

“If you want to see more drugs in New Zealand society, vote yes. But if you don’t, vote no.”

He said it was “silly” for the government to make more money; instead, it would be spending more on mental health issues, for example, he said.

“The fact that the gangs won’t be there – what a pile of crap.

“Of course the gangs will be there. In fact, they will have a cheaper product because they do not pay taxes.

“In the end, if you want a society where there are more drugs and your children are more likely to take them, vote yes. Personally, I will vote no.”

Key defended National’s election campaign. She said that some of the criticism Collins had faced concerned small issues that had no impact on the electorate.

“I don’t think many voters are going to hold that against Judith,” Key said, referring to the claims of a crowd of National supporters at Collins’ Ponsonby walk yesterday.

Key said that all parties, not just the National, had supporters who always knew where the leadership was on any given day.

He said that this type of problem highlighted in the media was more of a “process problem” blocking the main messages from a certain party.

Key acknowledged that Ardern’s success or the ‘it’ factor may also have had a lot to do with her being at the forefront during the Covid-19 response.

“That adds to a celebrity factor,” he said.

“The principle is that it is fundamentally easier when you are Prime Minister.”

Questions arose about Collins’ leadership when he promised an Auckland Council review, if National was elected, live on Newstalk ZB earlier this week.

National council spokeswoman Denise Lee was unaware of that and sent an email describing Collins’ announcement as a “very troublesome idea.” Later, the email was leaked to the media.

The National leader was also criticized yesterday when a media walk in Auckland’s Ponsonby saw them bump into a crowd of National supporters.

Last weekend, Collins was photographed offering a prayer at St Thomas Church in Tāmaki while voting with her husband David Wong-Tung.

Images of her kneeling on a bench resulted in claims that the leader apparently politicized her faith, something she later refuted as she had not invited the media to photograph her at the time.

Collins has said that he will remain in the leadership role if his party is unsuccessful next Saturday.