Simon Bridges and his wife Natalie at the beach at Mt Maunganui yesterday. Photo / Alan Gisbon
A surf lifesaver was one of many people who came up to Tauranga's new MP, Simon Bridges, and congratulated him as he began a relentless day of media interviews and meet-and-greets yesterday.
After shaking his hand, the lifesaver said in the next breath, "Do us a favour and
get us some funding from the Government, eh?"
Standing in the sand at Mt Maunganui, Mr Bridges told the lifesaver he had already had discussions with his boss and was aware of their need for support.
At the same time, the 32-year-old said, "I'm not stupid enough to make any promises, though," to which the surf lifesaver replied that he understood.
The exchange marked the transition for Mr Bridges from National Party candidate to the city's new representative in the House.
He said he was looking forward to getting down to Parliament, "soaking it all in and learning and hopefully being put to some hard work".
He had not yet spoken to party leader John Key about possible positions in the new caucus, but pundits predict a quick rise through the ranks to an eventual Cabinet post.
The outgoing Tauranga MP, National's Bob Clarkson, said he had not always been in favour of pitting the young candidate against Winston Peters for the seat.
But after Mr Bridges' convincing 10,669-vote majority over the NZ First leader, Mr Clarkson said the new MP had exceeded his expectations.
Mr Clarkson was open about his own dislike for what he believed was the slow pace of change in Parliament, saying he was not patient enough for the system. But he expected Mr Bridges, a former Crown prosecutor, to adjust much better than he had in the past three years.
