KEY POINTS:
National is going to have to reverse its policy to abolish the Maori seats - not just quietly dump it - if it wants to make a deal with the Maori Party after the election.
Under a policy released yesterday the Maori Party wants the seven seats entrenched in law, and it says that's a bottom line in any post-election negotiations.
Unless National and ACT have enough seats for a majority the Maori Party could hold the balance of power in Parliament.
National would need its support or at least an agreement for it to abstain on confidence votes.
Its problem policy says a process would start in 2014, after all historic Treaty of Waitangi claims have been settled, to abolish the seats.
National's leader, John Key, said last week it wasn't a bottom line for his party.
That meant it could be scrapped, but now National would have to bite the bullet and agree to entrench the seats.
That would make them safe unless there was a 75 per cent majority vote in Parliament to abolish them.
At present they could be abolished with a simple majority vote.
And something else that upset the Maori Party yesterday was senior National MP Lockwood Smith's comments about Pacific migrant workers needing toilet and shower training.
The immigration spokesman also said Asians had smaller hands and were better at picking fruit and pruning trees.
Maori Party co-leader Tariana Turia told NZPA the remarks were racist, rude and ignorant.
"He can smell the power coming his way and he thinks that's going to give him licence to speak out as he likes about any other people - it won't be tolerated," she said.
Mrs Turia virtually ruled out supporting a National-led government if Dr Smith didn't apologise.
He did, and an obviously irritated Mr Key said it was the right thing to do.
It was the second time this week that he had to field questions about incendiary comments by his senior MPs.
The first was transport spokesman Maurice Williamson saying there could be $3 tolls on some roads under National.
It was a lively day on the campaign trail after a slow start to the week and developments included:
* National promised to get tough on people who killed, abused or neglected children. Mr Key said violence against children wouldn't be tolerated by a National-led government and penalties would be substantially increased;
* A second opinion poll in the Te Tai Hauauru electorate showed the Maori Party's Tariana Turia well ahead of her Labour rival Errol Mason by 79 per cent to 19 per cent. A previous survey was almost identical - 77.7 per cent against 15.1 per cent;
* Contact Energy was under withering attack from political leaders for intending to increase the pay pool for its directors from $770,000 to $1.5 million, meaning an average $250,000 a year for a part-time job.
Prime Minister Helen Clark said Contact was sending out extortionate power bills and the public was tired of its greed. Progressive Party leader Jim Anderton said the company was rapacious and Energy Minister David Parker climbed into it as well. There's heavy pressure for something to be done about rampant profiteering by power companies;
* Chinese voters overwhelmingly support the National Party, according to a survey of shoppers by an Auckland-based Chinese newspaper.
The Chinese Herald questioned 894 Chinese speakers at shopping centres and found 57.7 per cent backed National and only 30.5 per cent supported Labour.
- NZPA
