Experts warn: don't vote for fewer MPs

By Bernard Orsman

Democracy will suffer and there will be fewer women and Maori in Parliament if the number of MPs is axed to 99, says a group of academics.

What is more, taking 21 MPs off the public payroll would save only a tiny sum and be counter-productive to taxpayers.

These were among the arguments put forward yesterday at the launch of a campaign to urge voters to reject the case for reducing the size of Parliament.

The campaign group includes more than 70 political scientists and constitutional and public law experts.

New Zealanders will vote on cutting the number of MPs from 120 to 99 in a citizens-initiated referendum alongside the general election.

The result will not be binding on the next Government.

Political observers expect this referendum and another election-day referendum on tougher penalties for violent crime to be passed overwhelmingly.

Dr Jonathan Boston, professor of public policy at Victoria University, said members of the group believed it was their academic duty to put forward strong, powerful and compelling arguments for keeping 120 MPs, at a "bare minimum."

The law prohibits public money being spent on education programmes for citizens-initiated referendums.

Reasons for the group opposing a reduction in the number of MPs are that the change would reduce:

* The number of women, Maori and other ethnic groups in Parliament.

* Quality of constituency representation.

* Effectiveness of select committees.

* Talent pool for selecting the cabinet.

* Capacity of the electoral system to ensure each party receives its proportional shares of seats.

Dr Boston said 99 MPs would give New Zealand one of the smallest Parliaments in the Western world.