Rodney Hide: Corrosive wound to our democracy

Green Party leader Metiria Turei and Labour leader Andrew Little. Photo / Mark Mitchell, Jason Oxenham

Labour and the Greens are not getting along. It's tricky. They must show they can work together but Andrew Little must also show he's boss. We won't elect to Government bickering parties - but we don't want to vote Labour and get Green.

The latest spat was a bit of thoughtlessness. I doubt it was calculated. But it escalated and the failure to keep it inhouse proves Labour and the Greens need to work on their relationship.

Little hadn't consulted the Greens about appointing Labour MP David Shearer to the Intelligence and Security Committee. Yawn. That's despite having a statutory obligation to do so. Yawn.

The Greens learned of the snub through the media. Whoops. Metiria Turei said Little had acted "unlawfully" and she was expecting a call from him "quite soon".

Little defended leaving Turei out in the cold, saying he wanted someone with "skills, understanding and experience". Ouch.

When told the Greens were upset, Little said: "Ask them again tomorrow."

What he had planned, he didn't say. But whatever it was, it didn't work. The new day dawned and the Greens were still frothing.

Green MP Mojo Mathers strode into Parliament to tell how Little's dismissal of Turei was offensive to her and "many other women". Little's failure to appoint Turei, she explained, was because of his "male privilege" bubbling up. That's the worst thing to a Green.

Gender doesn't matter to them - unless you are male. And nor does ethnicity - unless you are white. Little is both.

Mathers explained Turei would have brought to the committee an "understanding of what powerlessness and humiliation feels like". That's probably true but I want the members of the Security Committee projecting power and confidence.

But then I am a privileged male and naturally side with Little. Our spooks and spies are busy enough battling terrorism without having to listen to Turei. Besides, she opposes Intelligence and Security.

The Greens and Labour must learn to keep their differences inhouse.

They should learn from National. National MPs know how to shut up.

Despite the best efforts of the Parliamentary Opposition and the Fourth Estate, National MPs remain mum about who was responsible for former MP Mike Sabin chairing the Law and Order Select Committee while under police investigation.

Their evasions and refusals made ministers look foolish, tricky and arrogant, but it would be worse for National, I fear, if someone were to own up. The refusal to answer questions wasn't pretty or nice but it worked.

It appears forever to remain a mystery how Parliament was so abused through such a corrosive conflict of interest.

That's bad for democracy, justice and Parliament, but jolly good for National.