Vocal opposition on House seating

By VERNON SMALL deputy political editor

National's disastrous election result and the strong showing by minor parties has sparked an acrimonious game of musical chairs in Parliament's debating chamber before next week's opening.

At issue is the distribution of sought-after frontbench seats from which party leaders can catch the eye of the Speaker - and the television cameras.

But minor parties are also questioning the rule that automatically gives National's Bill English the status of Leader of the Opposition when he represents fewer than half of all Opposition MPs.

"It's a convenient, old-boys arrangement made between National and Labour," said NZ First leader Winston Peters.

"The reality is that it is just a nonsense under MMP."

Green co-leader Rod Donald agreed: "He patently doesn't represent us, let alone United Future, nor Act and New Zealand First. "It has become a farce when the main opposition party is significantly smaller than the other combined parties who aren't in Government."

But the most pressing problem for Speaker Jonathan Hunt - who is certain to be re-elected on Monday - is resolving competing claims for the most prominent frontbench seats.

Of the 14 available on the Government's side, Labour will get 11, Peter Dunne's United Future two and Progressive Coalition leader Jim Anderton one.

But on the other side of the House, competing egos make for a conundrum.

National's 27 MPs can fit exactly into the main block of seats between the Speaker and the first aisle. But that would give them the nine prime seats opposite the leading Government ministers, leaving only five frontbench seats to share between NZ First, Act and the Greens, who hold 31 seats between them.

NZ First, with 13 MPs, wants three of the places but has been told it will get two. Act, with nine MPs, is also likely to get two.

The Greens, also with nine MPs but marginally fewer party votes at the election, have been pencilled in for only one.

"We are unhappy that we are not getting two frontbench seats, especially as we have a co-leadership," Mr Donald said.

"It's slightly annoying that United will get two frontbenches even though they have one less MP. It's outrageous that National, with only 27 seats, is going to get nine frontbench seats.

"The ratio is plain. National is getting one frontbench seat for every three MPs and we are getting one for every nine."

Mr Peters said National should have a maximum of six.

But two NZ First MPs were more effective than 10 of National's, "so what does it matter?"

Mr Hunt said yesterday that he had not made a final decision on who would sit where.

Meanwhile, the Greens may compromise if they can win more generous accommodation in the parliamentary complex.

United Future, which has been allocated two full floors in Bowen House, lost a seat to the Greens after special votes were counted .

"Last week the argument against us having two floors was that we had eight MPs and United had nine," said Mr Donald.

"We had to take the sacrifice. They should apply the same logic this week."

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