You’d be hard pressed not to know that Tuesday was the first Parliamentary day that the new National Party leadership duo fronted up in the debating chamber. A face off of the new champions from opposing sides.
Certainly on Tuesday the media were up in the press gallery in force to soak in the ambience and taste for the whiff of gladiator blood in the Circus Maximus.
Parliament's Press Gallery are out in force to observe the new National Leader's first Question Time first hand Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
It went smoothly enough. Nicola Willis was strong. Christopher Luxon had a few nerves.
But their outings have already been widely discussed. So we won’t go into specifics but note that participating in Question Time is a very specific and apparently difficult skill. What’s more, both sides of the exchange are entirely different skills.
In lieu of details, here are a handful of pictures from that aspect of the day.
'Let me at em...' Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Chritopher Luxon waves an admonishing finger during his first Question Time outing Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Picking out the next supplementary question from the prepared options Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Christopher Luxon's first Question Time. This is harder than it looks. Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Nicola Willis provides her new boss with a Question Time exemplar Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Where one changes, they all change
When a political party’s leadership changes, sometimes everything else gets thrown into the air as well. And, not just the reshuffle of rank and spokesperson topics, but all the moving parts.
As a result the energy inside the chamber this week has felt like the House was beginning a new year - but with just two weeks to go.
The House has been raucous and maintaining discipline a challenge.
The Speaker has had to spend time re-establishing authority over a newfound rabble - like a school teacher reimposing order after a lolly scramble. Everyone was both excited and sugared up.
The National Party MPs had reason to be all shook up and the other parties caught the mood.
For the Covid-era Speaker, maintaining discipline is hindered by the fact that every MP not currently involved is wearing a mask. It’s all but impossible to see who is actually shouting interjections.
Though early on in the week the new Leader of the Opposition was helping out by pulling his mask down in order to better barrack from the expensive seats.
Christopher Luxon pulls down his mask to better interject Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
The Speaker was not impressed. Christopher Luxon grinned and shrugged ‘worth a crack’ at his closest seat mates (Nicola Willis, Simon Bridges and Chris Bishop).
His first question hadn’t arrived yet and the excitement was brimming.
His interjections were at least timed well - in response to answers. Many MPs forgot the most basic precepts, and shouted out during the questions - a no-no.
How could they possibly remember, it was all too exciting.
The shuffled deck
As I noted, the opposition side of the House has had its deck well shuffled. In the House political parties are organised, even choreographed, as much as possible - for efficiency.
Who has to be present, who will speak and when, how long debates are likely to last, what the party approach is to them. How many questions everyone gets.
This work is done chiefly by the whips and National has a brand new whip as its Senior Whip - Chris Penk.
The Speaker Trevor Mallard has a quiet word with the new National Senior Whip Chris Penk Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
This week he has (among many other things) been learning to manage the party’s finite resource of supplementary questions - and doing so in the midst of a maelstrom. Like learning to sail a bucking tall ship in a storm.
The main opposition party also has the benefit of a House tactician who works with their whips. That person has also changed. Chris Bishop has retaken the role of Shadow Leader of the House from Michael Woodhouse (who was given it recently when Mr Bishop displeased the former leader).
Of all the new rank of leaders Chris Bishop has the advantage of having done this before.
National's returning Shadow Leader of the House, Chris Bishop interjects Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Add to all of that the fact that many National MPs are now expected to be experts at and ask questions about subject areas that are quite new to them.
Simon Bridges, for example, is National’s new Finance spokesperson. He seemed to be reveling in being front and centre, while remaining light headed from the lack of a crown.
He and the Minister of Finance engaged in and apparently enjoyed ongoing sparring through the week. On Wednesday they contravened enough to be banned from any further noise at all.
Christopher Luxon congrats Simon Bridges on his first finance Question Time Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
And it’s not just new leaders, and new topics. All the National Party MPs are also in new seats, rearranged and adapting to new bench partners and new locations.
The Speaker paused proceedings at one point to particularly request that new National bench-mates Erica Stanford and Simeon Brown might cry havoc slightly less raucously.
They are the opposition clarions newly placed close to the Speaker’s left ear. I sometimes wonder whether ACC lists Speaker as a particularly aurally-risky profession.
Simeon Brown noted he would “try”.
Speaker Trevor Mallard admonishes Simeon Brown and Erica Stanford. Ms Stanford suggests some alternative culprits. Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
You might think that the MPs would burn all that energy out of their system during Tuesday’s Question Time, and settle into the new normal.
You might think that, but on Wednesday the opposition benches were still over-excited enough that at one point the Speaker had three National MPs stand as a group to each take a turn in “withdraw and apologise” mode - like slightly tuneless carolers singing in rounds.
Even on Thursday, when the major party leaders were absent, the House was still charged enough that two National MPs were ejected before they even got through question three.
Suffice to say Santa’s naughty and nice list is being revised currently.
Presumably the frenetic energy in the House will ebb slightly over the next week - just in time for Christmas.
