Editorial: Thin ranks give Goff talent gap in election year

Phil Goff. Photo / Sarah Ivey

When ministers' misuse of taxpayer-funded credit cards during the Labour Party's time in office forced Phil Goff to reshuffle his shadow Cabinet last June, he acknowledged further change would be required. Yesterday, he finalised his election-year line-up.

Those who hoped for a thoroughgoing renewal are bound to be disappointed. Just one MP, first-termer Grant Robertson, has been promoted to a front bench that continues to be dominated by ministers from the Clark Government. With Labour in the doldrums and the need for an urgent infusion of youthful energy, new ideas and political appeal obvious, too many old faces continue to hold sway.

That is not to say all elements of the reshuffle are without merit. Most notably, there has been an attempt to remedy Labour's failure to effectively challenge the Government in two of the areas where ministers usually strike trouble. In health, Ruth Dyson has allowed Tony Ryall a virtually unblemished run, while the party's education spokesman, Trevor Mallard, has scored only small points off Anne Tolley.

The two ministers' lives will undoubtedly be more uncomfortable and Labour will enjoy more time in the spotlight with Mr Robertson, who takes the health portfolio, and Darren Hughes, who relinquishes his party whip duties for education.

Mr Goff was also right to keep Shane Jones off the front bench, even while he picks up the transport, infrastructure and associate Maori affairs portfolios. Not enough time has yet passed since Mr Jones' demotion for the misuse of his ministerial credit card. When his name is mentioned, the word "porn" still springs to mind. The Labour leader was also certainly of a mind to keep on side with the former Maori Affairs Minister, Parekura Horomia, who holds one of only two Maori electorates Labour has kept from the Maori Party.

The reshuffle reflects a particular problem inherited by Mr Goff - the shortage of talent in Labour's intake from the 2005 election. MPs entering Parliament then should now be coming to the fore in the shadow Cabinet. The skininess of this mid-level option means Mr Goff has had to turn his attention to the far stronger intake from the most recent election.

He has acknowledged their potential by fast-tracking Mr Robertson and promoting the likes of Jacinda Ardern (employment), Phil Twyford (local government) and Su'a William Sio (Pacific Island affairs). Doubtless, concerns about political inexperience persuaded Mr Goff not to place more of them on the front bench.

Yet there is reason enough to suggest even meatier roles for the faces of the future would have been welcomed widely. More so, certainly, than the continued lofty ranking of figures associated with an agenda that lost the last election.

Government policies have provided Labour with fertile opportunities. Traction should be gained on issues such as the planned part-privatisation of state-owned assets, rising unemployment, and the foreshore and seabed. So, also, the opening of ACC to competition, where another first-time Labour MP, Chris Hipkins, will take on Nick Smith.

The thrust of the reshuffle means, however, there will be an even greater onus on Mr Goff and his finance spokesman, David Cunliffe. The Labour leader said yesterday that his party would "hold the Government to account for its failure to live up to its promises and to provide the economic leadership this country desperately needs".

Mr Cunliffe has been another to make small points well without providing a compelling broader prescription for the economy. Now the line-up die is cast, both he and Mr Goff will need to supply a far stronger spark if Labour is to be a credible challenger on November 26.