National has taken a 6 point dive in the latest Roy Morgan poll, below the combined support of Labour and the Greens at 45.5 per cent.

Fran O'Sullivan asks, "What pushed Key to the point where he applied the choke chain to the Cabinet's Rottweiler? Pity Key didn't yank the chain earlier."

Embattled Justice Minister Judith Collins faced a huge test this afternoon as she fronted up to Parliament's Question Time over her Oravida conflict of interest affair.

John Key is punting on the Opposition attack running out of steam by the time Judith Collins goes on leave, writes John Armstrong. That is not a safe bet.

Prime Minister John Key laid out the welcome mat for foreigners yesterday and said it was a point of contrast between National and other parties.

Labour could still win power at the next election, National deputy leader and Finance Minister Bill English said in a speech warning against complacency.

Prime Minister John Key says Police Associate president Greg O'Connor should present any evidence he has that MPs are increasingly interfering in police work.

Most foreign investors who come to New Zealand bring capital and "know how" and make a great contribution to our young country, writes Fran O'Sullivan.

Judith Collins’ staff sought a briefing from MFAT staff before the "private" dinner she had with Oravida bosses and a Chinese border control official.

Editorial: The PM did the right thing in accepting Maurice Williamson's resignation yesterday - but his swift response can't paper over some trouble aspects of the incident.

Mr Williamson today resigned his ministerial portfolios after the Herald revealed he phoned a senior police officer about the criminal charges that Liu was facing. Prime Minister John Key said today Mr Williamson "crossed the line", despite assuring him that he did not intend to influence the prosecution.

Maurice Williamson lobbied a colleague to give citizenship "as fast as possible" to a businessman - then conducted the ceremony himself the day after it was granted.

National MP Maurice Williamson crossed the line in making a phone call to police over the case of a wealthy businessman, Prime Minister John Key says. Mr Williamson told a senior police officer that the businessman, Donghua Liu, who was facing domestic assault charges, was "investing a lot of money in New Zealand" and urged police to be on "solid ground", according to internal police emails.

Maurice Williamson says he was not asking for special treatment for a rich Chinese businessman and he will contest his position as MP at this year's election.

National MP Maurice Williamson crossed the line in making a phone call to police over the case of a wealthy businessman, Prime Minister John Key says.

Maurice Williamson's resignation as a minister was forced by "a significant error of judgment" in the words of Prime Minister John Key, writes Audrey Young.

Maurice Williamson's interference in the police case involving businessman Donghua Liu is a sackable offence, writes Herald political editor Audrey Young.

PM John Key says leaving some synthetic drugs on the market was “a mistake” and Government should have banned all products until a rigorous testing regime was in place.

New Zealanders whose lives have been blighted by the dangers of legal highs are thrilled by plans to pull them from sale within a fortnight.

It's a wonderfully Kiwi thing that National Party honcho Sir Wira Gardiner financially supported Shane Jones' bid to become Labour leader.

NZ's ambassador to China asked Judith Collins to tell him anything he needed to know about a Beijing dinner with an unnamed senior Chinese official.

Conservative Party leader Colin Craig says he does not intend to ask National to gift him an electorate.

National Party powerbrokers Peter Goodfellow and long-term partner Desley Simpson have married in an intimate service at a resthome.

Justice Minister Judith Collins has recovered her memory after telling Parliament she could not recall whether she had briefed New Zealand's ambassador to Beijing about her Oravida dinner.

Judith Collins was under pressure on two fronts yesterday, facing further questions over both the Oravida conflict-of-interest saga and widespread fresh privacy issues in her ACC portfolio.