Peters in control, or just looks that way?

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

Winston Peters appears to be using his leverage in coalition talks to maximum effect, although the proof of that will be in the details of the agreement eventually reached between his New Zealand First party, Act and National.
Talks that have been shrouded in as much secrecy as possible — and which began with Peters at arm’s length in the hope of the other two parties that he wouldn’t be needed, and with him probably confident he would be and wanting to keep his powder dry — have played out publicly on the NZ First leader’s terms this week.
It has been reported that  Peters was not happy with elements of a draft agreement presented by National at the end of last week. 
This will have ensured that negotiating the finer details couldn’t proceed at pace over the weekend, meaning a deal could not be struck in time for Christopher Luxon to make the Apec leaders summit in San Fransisco today — a target they had all aimed for, while making clear that forming a “strong, stable” government together was their overriding priority.
On Monday, NZ First deputy leader Shane Jones put this down to the “jagged edges of tax policy”, indicating they weren’t willing to budge on National’s plan to let wealthy foreign buyers back into the housing market, taxing their purchases to help fund tax relief for income earners.
On Tuesday, Jones was talking up Act leader David Seymour’s approach to the Treaty of Waitangi — he wants Parliament to redefine what the principles of the Treaty are (as opposed to courts and the Waitangi Tribunal), so it is clear what is meant in legislation referencing the principles, then put it to a referendum; previous NZ First policy was to remove references to Treaty principles from legislation, and like National it is opposed to a Treaty referendum  — suggesting the two parties have reached agreement on how they want to proceed in this area. “There are various ways to remind jurists of what their proper role is,” Jones said.
Peters was expected to arrive in Wellington on Monday night for a first meeting together of all three party leaders on Tuesday. He didn’t show — although apparently he and Luxon spoke on the phone several times — and that night Luxon and Seymour flew back to Auckland ahead of a meeting with Peters in an inner-city hotel yesterday morning.
Guess who got bragging rights, posting a pic of the three on social media first? Peters, six minutes ahead of the other leaders’ posts.
It is said that Peters demands respect as a coalition partner. He has been dictating process this week; it will be interesting to see if that itself is a trade-off for the others as much as any policy wins and losses.