Greens in bid for top posts

Green MPs will push Labour for more tariffs and at least one cabinet post if they form part of a centre-left coalition after the election.

Polls suggest Labour and the Alliance may be unable to form a government without help from the Greens, who are now close to 5 per cent support and could win Coromandel.

But Green co-leader Rod Donald said yesterday that the party would expect some concessions from Labour as the price of its support.

He suggested that the party's other co-leader, Jeanette Fitzsimons, could be minister for the environment, or perhaps energy, fisheries or transport.

Mr Donald wanted to be minister for economic development, which he admitted would cause problems.

Alliance leader Jim Anderton was adamant this week that this job was reserved for him, while Labour finance spokesman Michael Cullen showed little enthusiasm for having the role at all.

On key coalition policy issues, Mr Donald said: "We're strongly opposed to free trade. That's going to be a major battle, primarily with Labour."

The Greens had not set an exact tariff level but would probably want to go further than the Alliance policy of a 5 per cent tariff on all imports except Australian goods.