It has been hinted at recently but has now been confirmed – Lalia Harre is re-joining the Labour Party.
1 News: Laila Harre rejoins Labour Party, sets her sights on standing in election
After 30 odd years, Laila Harre has re-joined the Labour Party – and she wants to be a Labour candidate at next year’s election.
“It’s been a while. It’s really great to be back,” says Ms Harre, who first joined Labour in 1982 at the tender age of 15.
She parted ways with Labour in the late 1980s; disillusioned by the reforms at state asset sales of the David Lange Labour Government and the “Rogernomics” policies of the then Finance Minister Roger Douglas.
Jim Anderton left too and Laila Harre joined him at NewLabour, which later morphed into the Alliance, which was a grouping of NewLabour, the Democratic Party, Mana Motuhake, and the Greens.
After the Alliance fell to pieces in 2002 Harre had a break from politics.
Then in 2012-13 she worked for the Green Party as ‘ inaugural issues director’.
The next year, 2014, she became leader of Kim Dotcom’s Internet party.
The veteran campaigner says she does regret her four months with the Internet Party because of the damage it did to her reputation.
I’m not surprised. Then she had a break from parties until returning to her roots now, Labour. He ex-colleague from the Alliance Party Matt McCarten is wheeling and dealing for Labour in Auckland and I expect has had some influence in this move.
Now she believes that the time isn’t right for new political parties.
“The Left, I guess have consolidated around Labour and the Greens – and Labour, I think, are really strongly reconnecting to their roots and they are my roots in the trade union movement.”
Nick Leggett was rubbished by left wing activists, first for leaving Labour and then for joining National. He was criticised for not being committed. I wonder what they will say about Harre’s party hopping.
Labour general secretary Andrew Kirton says that Harre will have to go through the same process as other hopeful candidates.
Rumours have linked her to New Lynn, which will become available with David Cunliffe’s exit, but others have also expressed an interest there – New Labour candidate for Rangitikei with Deborah Russell hoping to head north.
Deborah Russell said she had been approached by several Labour associates to seek the nomination for the New Lynn seat David Cunliffe is vacating.
She would have run again in Rangitikei if the New Lynn opportunity had not come.
That sounds like virtually a done deal in New Lynn. Perhaps Harre will stand in Auckland Central as it looks like Jacinda Ardern wants to pick up Mt Albert now David Shearer is leaving.
Your NZ 
Pete Kane
/ 13th December 2016Kiss of death stuff?
Pete George
/ 13th December 2016I think it’s quite a risk for Labour.
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016I think so-I may be completely wrong, but she seems to be not only a party-hopper but a rather bossy person who may not take too kindly to a lower place in the hierachy. Vote for her at your peril.
dave1924
/ 13th December 2016McCartens agenda has to be seriously questioned. He is destroying the broad church of Labour and resurrecting the Alliance inside its shell…..
Harre is a death knell for any chance of regaining the centre….
Blazer
/ 13th December 2016the ‘centre’ are about to get a wake up..call.
Corky
/ 13th December 2016Sure sign Andy and Labour are on the wrong track for winning voters trust.
Thought train.
Lalia Harre- Alliance- Commie- Dotcom- Hone- Screaming Skull Pam Corkery- Internet Party- Dodgy Stuff- Fugg that.
Klik Bate
/ 13th December 2016I’ve always thought of Laila as ‘The thinking mans crumpet’…..
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016Are you sure that that’s her ?
Actually, there’s some crumpet for the thinking woman in the Beehive, too.
Gezza
/ 13th December 2016He’s a runt.
Corky
/ 13th December 2016Are you talking about big Ed…the cleaner?
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016Well, if he’s the big Pasifika man with the tattoo on his wrist….I don’t know who you mean, of course
There are some quite yummy men in Parliament, too. A good suit does something for a man.
Gezza
/ 13th December 2016It could be custom tailored in Saville Row & still make Muzza & Boris look untidy.
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016Well, that’s true. But a man who can wear a suit looks terribly elegant. I didn’t bury my old man in his-what a waste of a good suit. It went to the Red Cross shop where it would do some good. I was certain that he would have wanted this.
Blazer
/ 13th December 2016and you…what sort of woman do you like….then!BOL.
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016I like intelligent, witty women-and men.
It’s possible for most of us to admire and like people without wanting to have sex with them. I take it that your question didn’t refer to feelings of friendship.
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016BOL=Braying Offensively Loudly.
Blazer
/ 13th December 2016that was to Master Bate Kitty.I wanted to know the non-thinking mans idea of…’crumpet’!
Klik Bate
/ 13th December 2016Kitty Catkin
/ 14th December 2016I did wonder !
I read that crumpet is ‘offensive’, but on a scale of 1-10, it’s very low. There are many more offensive terms than that. I’d see crumpet as just a funny expression.
Zedd
/ 13th December 2016@KB
looks a bit like Jacinda to me 😀
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016Gezza, your duckdaughters may be up here in the Waikato. Do you have any ducksons ? There are a few of them around, too.
Gezza
/ 13th December 2016I don’t think they’d go up to the Waikato. They reckon the ducks up that way are birdbrains.
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016Charming. What ladies they are-just like their dad.
Gezza
/ 13th December 2016I’m just their foster dad. They don’t even know who their natural dad is. I’ve done my best.
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016Well, yes. Poor things, I suppose that dad cleared off when they were ducklings and set up house with another duck.
Blazer
/ 13th December 2016don’t ruffle Gezzas …feathers…
Kitty Catkin
/ 14th December 2016I won’t. He’s been a marvellous fosterduck to his duckdaughters and ducksons.
PartisanZ
/ 13th December 2016Laila Harre is smart IMHO. Kiwis are surprisingly forgiving people, as a litany of events in John Key’s tenure clearly testifies … Tea and Soap and Ponytails …
Example: The further away it gets the more peculiar the Flag Debacle looks to me. Like really sorta “creepy” peculiar … like “How did we fall for this”? (A bit like Rogernomics!)
Harre’s move could be both a signal to others and a watershed for real ‘adaptive change’ in Labour policy ….
Kitty Catkin
/ 13th December 2016Three things is hardly a litany.
I would be wary of someone who’s been in five parties.
PartisanZ
/ 13th December 2016There’s four things there Miss Kitty, if you count the $26 million Flag Debacle …
I won’t go through a whole long list – Key’s Legacy has been widely discussed elsewhere – but also on his watch is the housing crisis [final nail in the coffin of the Kiwi dream] and the Saudi Sheep deal …
Nothing to be concerned about, of course …
Our new ‘economy’ [which has replaced our ‘society’] encourages “shopping around”, doesn’t it? Heck, I was very wary about someone who was an international currency speculator.
Pete Kane
/ 13th December 2016So if Ardern wins Mt Albert that brings the next off the list – yea?
Pete George
/ 13th December 2016There’s been some talk of skipping the next two on the list to get Raymond Huo back , I don’t know whether that’s because he’s very good or they want some ethnic representation.
Pete Kane
/ 13th December 2016Just picked your comment Pedro. See when National went through so called dead wood issues at the last election, they at least had a back pocket full of QUANGOS and SOE Directorships to help with ‘negotiations’.
Pete Kane
/ 13th December 201615 STREET, Maryan
16 GOFF, Phil
17 MACKEY, Moana
So if Street turns it down ( or is persuaded) they get Mackey – gee what an elegant prize pool.
Pete George
/ 13th December 2016And Huo is next after that.
Pete Kane
/ 13th December 2016Deborah Russell is a very strong candidate in my view.
Pete George
/ 13th December 2016Yes, one of their better ones. It will be interesting to see if she gets New Lynn. She will have to take a different approach to Woods in Mt Roskill who campaigned as a local.
Blazer
/ 13th December 2016Agree,a great asset for Labour,A must for Parliament.
Pete Kane
/ 13th December 2016Yea I think it’s a real shame she’s not there now Blazer. Good thing about her taking New Lynn would be to put her in (maybe outside) contention for a ministerial post.
Conspiratoor
/ 13th December 2016A classicly beautiful woman in a mini-me suit will look right at home on labours front bench
Blazer
/ 13th December 2016hows your debate going…cock?
Conspiratoor
/ 13th December 2016Get back to the bar b, the team are thirsty
Strong For Life
/ 13th December 2016Comrade Harre has nil to offer the country. She is only interested in getting back aboard the taxpayer funded gravy train.
Zedd
/ 13th December 2016when she was with dotcom, they were talking ‘lets legalise weed’..
maybe she will push the Med-use, that Labour apparently support too?? 😀
duperez
/ 13th December 2016Another minor act which will capture politiholics and hate merchants for a time.
Alan Wilkinson
/ 13th December 2016She has a voice like a dentist’s drill and will park Labour on the left of the Left. She will trouble Little more than English.
bjmarsh1
/ 14th December 2016Success will go to the most imaginative and appealing policy plan publicised in attractive ways by MPs who know what the policy is and how to sell it to us, the vote-givers. My priorities are: First a sound 10 year economic and fiscal plan to grow wealth, reduce Debt (all types) and maximise incomes for the bottom 25% while retaining incentives for achievement and success. 2. Sort out Education so that at Primary and secondary levels the gender disparity is reduced significantly, restore emphasis on Mathematics Engineering Science and Information Technology, by following the Singapore Plan for Education. 3. Build houses for social housing stock without creating ghettos, maximise quality of housing and minimise section sizes, 4. Prepare a Capital Works and Services Plan on a 5 year plan and in parallel plan for maintenance of all existing services, 5. Review Superannuation to confirm opportunities for a band of elective retirements from 60 to 70 years to take account of life expectancy. Pay a standard rate for age with annual increments up to 70 years age. It will require actuarial inputs to ensure fairness. 7. Continue to plan for expansion of trade opportunities, and continue to have an independent Foreign and Defence Policy to maximise our own security.8. Increase police strength by 1500.
The rest I would deal with if and when the economy permits.