Tasman neighbours drifting apart, says ex-PM Moore

New Zealand and Australia are starting to drift apart after a century of convergence, former prime minister Mike Moore said today.

Mr Moore, prime minister for a brief period before Labour lost the 1990 election, said both countries shared a "political cycle" of similarities which was now being broken.

"After 100 years of convergence, there is the beginning of divergence," he said in an article published in the Dominion-Post newspaper.

"Australia is becoming more like the United States and New Zealand more like Canada and a bit Nordic."

Mr Moore, who was director-general of the World Trade Organisation after he quit politics, said that in trade policy New Zealand's interests had, until recently, been seen as identical to Australia's.

"The first substantial difference has been Australia's free trade arrangement with the US," he said. New New Zealand had not been able to achieve a similar arrangement, largely because of its anti-nuclear legislation that prevents US warships visiting New Zealand ports, Mr Moore said.

"The elephant in the living room that the polite diplomatic community will not admit to is the defence and security issue."

He does not see that obstacle being removed. "No politician in New Zealand could ever support changing New Zealand's nuclear-free status. It won't happen; it's not a starter," he said.

In the article, Mr Moore compared former prime minister David Lange's memoirs with the diaries published by former Australian Labor Party leader Mark Latham.

"Both vomit hate and ungrateful contempt for their mates, parties and profession," he said.

"Mark Latham lets himself down. Without the bitter, shameful personal abuse, the book could have been very useful."

Mr Moore said Mr Latham's account of "opportunistic economic policy" was a fascinating story, if it was true.

"And he seems to have had a good bullshit detector about politically-correct programmes, which are now frequently out of control in New Zealand," Mr Moore added.

- NZPA