After a wee holiday, some thoughts on how the new government should play its hand... and reflections on some good decisions that laid the ground for the 'coalition of losers'
Read MoreElection 2014
Quotes of the year, Pundit style
What are the words that captured the year in a few syllables and defined 2014? Read on...
Read MoreAndrew Little's New Plymouth problem
There's a lot of smart money going on Andrew Little's bid to lead the Labour Party, but the numbers in New Plymouth don't lie. So what are they saying?
Read MoreA divided country?
The election demonstrated deep divisions. Will the next three years make them worse or help heal the rift? And where will the pressure points be?
Read MoreParty renewal: National's success, Labour's failing
If National can adapt to change, why can't Labour?
Read MoreThe shape of the new government - who gets what
A glimpse behind the door of supply and confidence negotiations reveals the dominant political fact this term - Key is King
Read MoreWhat Labour needs to hear: the 4th voice
Who will determine Labour's future – the MPs, the members, the unions? The fact is that after a 24 percent election result they are the wrong people to listen to and the truth may be every hard to hear
Read MoreHow sustainable is New Zealand?
One of the biggest issues missed during the election campaign was the sustainability of National's economic, environmental and even social policies. So what do you do if the government's not thinking long-term?
Read MoreWhat Labour forgot: You've got to earn it
Whether or not Labour changes its leader, the MPs gathered in Wellington today need to stop blaming everyone else and take a long, hard look at themselves
Read MoreA healthy dose of humble pie
In which your author admits to (at least) two big mistakes about the 2014 election, and then proceeds to risk making another one.
Read MoreThe Key to a 4th term
An emphatic win for National raises a whole series of questions, especially for a left-wing struggling to understand middle New Zealand... and then there's Dotcom
Read MoreThe story's not done yet - a final post
What Winston Wants – the campaign edition
New Zealand First is well placed to return to parliament next term and tomorrow night could end up holding the balance of power. So what might happen next?
Read MoreWe need to talk about Colin (Craig)
Rachel MacGregor's resignation will raise doubts in the swing voters giving the Conservatives a hard look, but what about its top policies? Do its numbers add up?
Read MoreThe Moment of Truth #2 – Humpty Dumpty words
All sides in the current spying debate are choosing their words very carefully as the search for lies intensifies. But what do those words mean?
Read MoreThe Moment of Truth #1
It'll take two posts to get through my observations of tonight's big reveal at the Auckland Town Hall. This one's on the timing and strategy around the revelations
Read MoreKeeping up with the rapid story of Glenn Greenwald & NZ spying
Glenn Greenwald's claims starting on The Nation this weekend have unleashed a flood of news. Can we process it in time? And what will it mean to a very pragmatic people?
Read MoreWinston Peters: His six bottom lines
Want to know all the bottom lines Winston Peters has laid down this year?
Read MoreTax cuts tangles
Tax has caused problems for both major parties at the sharp end of the election campaign, but the difference is that one party is using it to dominate the conversation with less than two weeks to go
Read MoreWinston or Colin? How 2017 will determine Key's choice
If National maintain current polling and both the Conservatives and New Zealand First get to five percent, Key will be in the catbird seat. But which might he choose and why?
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