Good press in Gisborne
I've always found that some of the provincial newspapers in New Zealand actually have a much more open-minded approach to politics than the papers in the so-called sophisticated metropolitan areas.
This article in the Gisborne Herald shows some good insight.

Mauled last time out the Alliance is far from being a spent force

by Iain Gillies
Wednesday, 11 May, 2005

THOUSANDS of workers were sorry to see the mauling the Alliance received in the 2002 election.

The party seemed to self-destruct but appears to have picked itself up to contest this year’s election with 12 constituency candidates and a substantial party list.

Missing will be the party’s high-profile politicians which gave the Alliance 10 seats in Parliament in 1999 until its disastrous split before the last election.

But its fundamental policies remain unchanged, focusing on left-wing economic bread-and-butter issues.

It expects to field a party list of about 30 candidates, to be finalised at a national meeting in Christchurch on May 14-15.

It is also likely to opt for two co-leaders, one of whom could be party president Jill Ovens of Auckland, an organiser for the Service and Food Workers Union.

Gone are the days when the Alliance represented a group of constituent parties comprising the Liberals (now defunct), the Green and Democrats (now standing in their own right), Mana Motuhake (possibly aligned with the Maori party) and NewLabour.

Though NewLabour has been formally dissolved many former members represent a solid core in the Alliance.

As a founding member of NewLabour, and now Dunedin North candidate for the Alliance, Victor Billot says: "We’re no longer an alliance of parties, but the name is an identifiable brand.

"I think the parties were united by what they were against rather than what they were for; in advocating a strong opposition to the new Right."

The Alliance is now only a small player, but it is a descendant of the ideals of the original Labour Party.

Today’s Labour Party talks Left and walks Liberal. Its message to traditional supporters must leave confusion in its wake. Some say it is a pragmatic approach, but it doesn’t ring well with many.

The Alliance is advocating policies which are quite different, not just a different shade. While Labour seeks to manage society in a slightly different way, the Alliance seeks to transform it.

But it has a hard row to hoe.
- posted by Victor @ 9:44 PM