Party time: Great outdoors a small fry in the Big Smoke

By JULIE MIDDLETON

Here we have apathy in full flight," says Scott Macindoe, scanning the square and its handful of occupants. "It's mind-numbing."

It's 2.08pm on a hazy-sky Sunday at Auckland's Viaduct Basin, and new Nelson-based political party Outdoor Recreation NZ has precisely 19 people at its rally.

Of that number, scattered inside a semi-circle of grunty four-wheel-drives, two are from the Herald and two are kids. MC is tour guide Wayne Wills - better known as Bill Hohepa. Macindoe will speak on behalf of an aligned lobby group.

Across the basin, brunchers munch. Couples saunter past the rally to gawk at luxury yachts moored nearby, then stroll back again.

Ohope's Peter Gibbons, No 9 on the party's 12-man list, snorts: "Up here they'd rather suck a latte and say, 'This doesn't concern us'."

"This" is prioritising and protecting the great outdoors and public access to it. Think Young Nicks Head, fishing quota, access to land, water quality, 1080 poison.

The party's main slogan is a pitiful indictment of the turnout: "Apathy is eroding your rights to your outdoor heritage".

But don't confuse these affable, well-organised guys with tie-dyed Greens.

Fishing and hunting are high on their collective list of interests, though their occupations range from commercial eel fisherman to rod and tackle shop owner, quantity surveyor to engineer.

The No 3 on the list, engineer Paul Check, tells the gathering that foreigners should be banned from purchasing our wilderness. They must also be prevented from buying Crown leases in the South Island and then blocking access to Kiwi playgrounds.

"In many countries where these foreign investors reside," he says, "there is legislation preventing the sale of land assets that will impose restrictions on public access."

The list No 6, Rotorua holiday park owner Peter Ellery, says the party will be "constantly" advised by fans of the outdoors - four-wheel-drivers, kayakers, trampers, fishers, mountaineers ...

There's a speaker from the Recreational Fishing Council, and two from Option 4, a pro-public lobby group which has rejected the Government's three suggestions for managing the fisheries and has come up with its own.

One of them is booming Bill Cooke: "I wouldn't give a stuff if there were only five people [at the rally] ... the principle is support for these boys for having the ostrich-sized balls to do this."

Bystander Brian Nicholls, who runs a fish and game shop, is sold: "A lot of people are coming back to New Zealand for the lifestyle, but that's getting closed off."

Auckland's lack of interest, say the candidates, isn't reflected elsewhere.

Newspapers in the South Island have the party polling 3.5 per cent in Nelson and the West Coast, they claim, and a tantalising 4.5 per cent in Christchurch.

With 4000 paid-up members - the Bay of Plenty is the stronghold - they jeer that Jim Anderton's Progressive Coalition is lagging.

Says Mr Check: "We're the dark horse in this election. Watch out, Helen, here we come."

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