David Cunliffe says he has been offered a job to good to turn down so he will leave Parliament next year. He is going to remain long enough to avoid a by election in his New Lynn electorate.
Significant factors are likely to be Cunliffe’s failure as Labour leader in the 2014 election – Labour slumped – and the jobs offered by his replacement leader Andrew leader were fairly insulting.
Cunliffe is currently ranked 27th out of Labour’s 31 MPs.
Little announced that Cunliffe would not be seeking re-election (RNZ):
“He is joining the leadership team of Auckland-based management consultancy Stakeholder Strategies Ltd, a leading strategy and organisation consulting firm that provides advice on commercial, economic and environmental issues,” Mr Little said.
He said Mr Cunliffe planned to step down sometime next year and wanted to avoid triggering a by-election.
He had made a “strong contribution” to Labour as the MP for New Lynn since 1999 and as a former leader and finance spokesperson.
“I’m not here to talk about things that happened a long time ago, David has made his decision, I have made the announcement today and so we know think about the next steps, but understand David continues to be well-respected and a good friend of mine.”
Cunliffe also played a part in Labour changing the way they elected their leader, which probably made the difference on whether Littler took over or not.
Cunliffe says he is choosing to go and wasn’t pushed – but the lack of prospects under Little must have played a part in his decision.
“A great opportunity has come my way. I’ve got options and I’m looking forward to taking them.
Opportunities and options for him in Parliament were not great.
Asked about his greatest challenge since entering Parliament in 1999, Mr Cunliffe said challenges “come and go”.
“Look, I’ve had a great run in politics, it’s a rollercoaster as we all know, but it’s an opportunity at the end of the day to make a difference for New Zealanders. It’s not about us, it’s about them and improving their lives and God knows they need help at the moment.”
Mr Cunliffe said one of his biggest regrets was the impact Kim Dotcom and the Internet Party had on the result of the 2014 election.
“A large German billionaire that came from nowhere and swung like a wrecking ball through New Zealand politics. We tried to stay well away from him, but undoubtedly he was a one-man turnout machine for marginal National voters.”
So he is blaming his and Labour’s failures on Dotcom. There was a lot more too the election than that. Cunliffe wasn’t seen as Prime Minister material by the voters.
