A single Peters 'boo' enough to put Key on notice

Winston Peters enjoys a coffee at Zest Cafe in Kerikeri. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Winston Peters' initial contribution to parliamentary proceedings in his new guise as MP-elect for Northland must rank as being among the shortest and more bizarre interventions he has made during his nearly four decades in the House.

"Boo!" he suddenly exclaimed after rising to his feet to fire a question at the Prime Minister during yesterday's sitting, the first since National was trounced in last Saturday's byelection.

It was Peters' way of telling Key that he intends haunting National in relentless fashion from now until election day in 2017.

But scary it wasn't. It simply exacerbated the feeling that things were going slightly ga-ga. When it came to Peters' turn to ask his question, Labour MPs burst into not-so-spontaneous, but most definitely sustained, applause. As much as they were congratulating Peters for his byelection triumph, they were simultaneously rubbing more salt into National's wounds.

Not surprisingly, National MPs did not join the clapping, instead breaking into a rendition of Happy Birthday. It was hard to tell whether the sentiment was genuine or, more likely, they were reminding Peters that he turns 70 in a week or so. Whatever, Peters' "boo!" quickly put a stop to that impromptu chorus.

Key and colleagues would have been expecting more ribbing than they got. Humour being one of the best weapons to wield in Parliament, the best effort came from Labour's David Clark, who had huge fun in making fun of Steven Joyce, who, as campaign manager, has to carry the can for National's hapless byelection strategy.

Clark began by wondering whether Joyce had used the same calculator to work out the benefits of double-laning 10 one-way bridges in Northland as he had used to calculate the SkyCity convention centre deal, which was subsequently subject to a blowout in costs.

"How much time will the double-laning of bridges save the average Northlander on their way to the polling booth in 2017?" Clark asked. He then praised Joyce, the Employment Minister, for improving employment outcomes, given recent reports that "at least one well-paid job as the National Party's campaign manager is now up for grabs".

Joyce simply parried the questions and refused to take the bait.

National's post-byelection modus operandi is simple. Having been humbled, National is doing its best to look humble.

That may be a strain. But National can console itself that yesterday could have been a lot worse.