Paula Bennett walks out of Parliament over National's treatment by Mallard

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Forums › Politics › Paula Bennett walks out of Parliament over National's treatment by Mallard

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#2021545 24-May-2018 07:38

Well tell the Nats and Labs to up their game. It is supposed to be Parliament not a kindy full of yelling kids. If Mallard was ex Nats, this thread would not exist, thats a fact

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gzt

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#2021547 24-May-2018 07:40

tdgeek: Yes, Parliament in Question Time is fundamentally childish, that needs to stop. The serious democratic process is being interrupted by childish behaviour.

It's been this way for several hundred years. It would be unwise to think it will be otherwise and enact strong measures to make it so. Some terms are more orderly than others. In this case the opposition believes it came x close to winning the previous election and has advertised an intention to act up a bit. No doubt that is creating challenges for the current speaker.

tdgeek

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#2021548 24-May-2018 07:44

gzt:
tdgeek: Yes, Parliament in Question Time is fundamentally childish, that needs to stop. The serious democratic process is being interrupted by childish behaviour.

It's been this way for several hundred years. It would be unwise to think it will be otherwise and enact strong measures to make it so. Some terms are more orderly than others. In this case the opposition believes it came x close to winning the previous election and has advertised an intention to act up a bit. No doubt that is creating challenges for the current speaker.

Yep, I know this childish behaviour is accepted, but maybe its time to smarten up. The pinnacle of management it is supposed to be

amiga500

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#2021562 24-May-2018 08:17

Maybe Mallard will go back to evicting from the chamber as the main punishment - seemed to work well for previous speakers. Things tend to settle down after someone has been kicked out. For all its faults question time is a vital part of our governmental system. Compare question time with Sarah Sanders evading questions on behalf of her boss and I will choose question time.

MikeB4

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#2021563 24-May-2018 08:24

their pay should be deducted each time they are evicted.

tdgeek

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#2021568 24-May-2018 08:32

amiga500:

Maybe Mallard will go back to evicting from the chamber as the main punishment - seemed to work well for previous speakers. Things tend to settle down after someone has been kicked out. For all its faults question time is a vital part of our governmental system. Compare question time with Sarah Sanders evading questions on behalf of her boss and I will choose question time.

Any option is a good option, however, those will still whine when evictions increase, democracy is falling apart, etc. It seems that silly behaviour by our Parliament is fully ok. I'd prefer more time spent debating and questioning than yelling and laughing. You would not tolerate this in a board meeting or a management meeting, so why do we accept this for 121 people that run our country?

GV27

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#2021573 24-May-2018 08:47

tdgeek:

amiga500:

Maybe Mallard will go back to evicting from the chamber as the main punishment - seemed to work well for previous speakers. Things tend to settle down after someone has been kicked out. For all its faults question time is a vital part of our governmental system. Compare question time with Sarah Sanders evading questions on behalf of her boss and I will choose question time.

Any option is a good option, however, those will still whine when evictions increase, democracy is falling apart, etc. It seems that silly behaviour by our Parliament is fully ok. I'd prefer more time spent debating and questioning than yelling and laughing. You would not tolerate this in a board meeting or a management meeting, so why do we accept this for 121 people that run our country?

Because it's not a board meeting.

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#2021584 24-May-2018 09:05

GV27:

tdgeek:

amiga500:

Maybe Mallard will go back to evicting from the chamber as the main punishment - seemed to work well for previous speakers. Things tend to settle down after someone has been kicked out. For all its faults question time is a vital part of our governmental system. Compare question time with Sarah Sanders evading questions on behalf of her boss and I will choose question time.

Any option is a good option, however, those will still whine when evictions increase, democracy is falling apart, etc. It seems that silly behaviour by our Parliament is fully ok. I'd prefer more time spent debating and questioning than yelling and laughing. You would not tolerate this in a board meeting or a management meeting, so why do we accept this for 121 people that run our country?

Because it's not a board meeting.

Ok, board meeting be productive, Parliament yell and scream?

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#2021588 24-May-2018 09:09

GV27:

Taking questions away from Labour costs them nothing but additional patsy questions. Giving extra supplementary questions to the Nats is pointless because they can't prepare for them or formulate a line of questioning to make use of them. But taking supplementaries away from the Nats completely stops their ability to raise additional questions in a planned line of questioning.

In short, it costs Labour nothing and gives zero advantage to the Nats, but the cost for the Nats has a direct impact on their ability to function as an opposition.

Exactly right, Mallard can take as many questions as he likes away from Labour, Greens and NZ First, and it doesn't really matter because they are in Government and are obviously not going to ask questions that are embarrassing to the Government.

But taking questions away from National is simply undemocratic and hinders the process of the Government being held to account. The "rules" should never have permitted Mallard / Labour to introduce such a system in the first place and the more that National complains about it, the better!

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#2021926 24-May-2018 16:24

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12057899

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/104172879/nationals-deadline-approaches-for-speaker-to-respond-over-remark

Just to keep this thread up to date, Paula Bennett didn't need to walk out of Parliament today, she was kicked out by the Speaker instead.

From the "Stuff" article:

National MP Paula Bennett has been booted from Parliament as the party filibusters Question Time in anger at the Speaker.

The National Party's 2pm deadline for Speaker Trevor Mallard to respond to its claim that he is pushing a story about an alleged sexist remark passed without a response.

National MPs responded with numerous points of order across several questions on Thursday afternoon, slowing down Question Time to a crawl.

National's Shadow Leader of the House, Gerry Brownlee, set out the deadline 2pm Thursday deadline in a strongly worded letter to the Speaker on Wednesday afternoon, also released to media, which said National's confidence in the Speaker was "severely shaken".

Gerry Brownlee's attempt to ensure that the number of questions allocated to parties for Question Time should not be able to be altered by the Speaker as a disciplinary measure, was rejected by the Government.

Although Question Time may now be a more entertaining TV watch than previously, I think all parties to this "war" should settle down and stop wasting each others time!

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#2021929 24-May-2018 16:28

Filibustering question time is childish and a waste of time. Paula Bennett and the National Party need to be above this behaviour.

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#2021956 24-May-2018 17:10

MikeB4:

Filibustering question time is childish and a waste of time. Paula Bennett and the National Party need to be above this behaviour.

I guess they have to go to these lengths to show that Mallard's childish system of reducing the number of allocated questions as a disciplinary measure, is not a democratic way of behaving. Perhaps the Speaker is the one who needs to stop acting in a childish manner?

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#2021960 24-May-2018 17:24

I feel the professional way to deal with it would be to table a motion of no confidence in the Speaker, that allows the Chamber to debate and vote. Take the high ground and allow let the Coalition look silly.

JimmyH

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#2022130 24-May-2018 21:28

If they have lost confidence in the Speaker, then the correct approach is surely to move a motion of no confidence in the Speaker. Not to waste everyone's time to no ultimate purpose. The other option would be to walk out en masse, which would be very embarrassing to the Speaker and send a pretty clear signal that he no longer speaks for the House.

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#2022136 24-May-2018 21:52

frednz:

MikeB4:

Filibustering question time is childish and a waste of time. Paula Bennett and the National Party need to be above this behaviour.

I guess they have to go to these lengths to show that Mallard's childish system of reducing the number of allocated questions as a disciplinary measure, is not a democratic way of behaving. Perhaps the Speaker is the one who needs to stop acting in a childish manner?

Yes, the correct and most mature way to deal with this situation is making barn yard noises and wasting everyone's time.

If I were an elected member of parliament, earning hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, holding the New Zealand's future in my hands, that is EXACTLY how I would resolve all disagreements with my work colleagues.

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