The election campaign has started and the political parties have published their policies. What follows is where Labour, National, Green, ACT, NZ First, New Conservative, and the Maori Party stand on Hobson’s Pledge issues.

With 46 percent support, National could form a government with NZ First that could look beyond paternalistic policies intended to “improve the lot of Maori”.

The new Labour leader’s threat of yet-to-be-specified widespread taxes has turned the general election into a close race with voters prioritising financial survival over disgust at years of race-based policy.

A burst of frantic activity by Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson during the last week of the Fifth National Government gives the appearance that he may think that the days of National rule are numbered.

New Zealand is a nation built on equality, and our equality is based on citizenship, not ethnicity, a full-page advert in today’s Sunday Star Times says.

Labour has yet another leader and the Green Party is overrun with a leader’s past indiscretions, what is the National Party about to do? One thing they could do would be to match the promise made by Winston Peters to hold a binding referendum of all voters on the future of the Maori seats.