Campaign Diary: 22 days to go

Compiled by John Armstrong

Finally, Nats get dose of good news

"It's the economy, stupid." Bill Clinton's staff pinned that reminder of what really matters to the office wall when distractions, such as his extramarital affairs, threatened to overwhelm his 1992 bid for the White House. After Monday's tax-cut wobbles, National got some ballast into its campaign yesterday with unemployment falling to 6.8 per cent, the lowest in two years. The good news was compounded by another jump in retail spending. National's TV commercials are notable for Jenny Shipley and Bill English admitting they misunderstood the impact of the Asian crisis and drought. Having got you hooked, they counter-punch by arguing that the economy weathered those storms because National's policies made it resilient. The subtext? National agrees we are not in the clover yet. But if it ain't broke, why risk someone else fiddling with it?

You read it here first

Broadcaster Paul Holmes had us scratching our heads and our Internet editor panicking when he told 'Holmes' viewers last night that he had found the results of today's Herald-DigiPoll survey on the Web. A terrible breach of security? Well, not quite. In fact, the poll Holmes came across and gave to his audience was a month old.

More crackling, sir?

Pork-barrel politics continued unabated yesterday. National offered to waive $70,000 of scallop-fishing levies in marginal Coromandel; Jenny Shipley handed out $1.3 million for preschool programmes in poor neighbourhoods; a further $760,000 will help pupils in Otara. Labour detailed its $80 million package for the West Coast.

What they said

* "I've been brought along here to be humiliated." - Act's Richard Prebble struggles to answer questions on "youth culture" at a Wellington forum.

* "Any improvement in the unemployment rate is welcome, however slight." - Labour's Steve Maharey tries to take the shine off yesterday's job figures.

Where they'll be

Richard Prebble and Winston Peters share the platform at an agribusiness seminar in Palmerston North; Helen Clark campaigns in Invercargill; Jim Anderton is in Dunedin; Jenny Shipley keeps pitching for the Auckland vote.