Labour limbers up for leadership runoff, self-immolation

Labour’s national council has set the timetable for the party's leadership contest, as well as the review into its election defeat and general direction.

General party secretary Tim Barnett told Radio New Zealand this morning that nominations for the election for leader will close on 14 October, with the new (or perhaps slightly shop-worn) leader installed on 18 November.

An internal interim report “looking at the nuts and bolts ... and essential points” regarding the general election will be made available to MPs and party members during the leadership campaign, he said.

Mr Barnett, who will serve as returning officer for the runoff, says the process will be the same as last year’s, “so people are going to look at issues around leadership, issues around policy, issues around direction and performance – I mean, this is a wider judgement than who people might point fingers at in terms of the election”.

“About three weeks after it’s over the report on the general election will come in,” he said, with the expectation it would be made public on 7 December.

“And then after that there’ll be a longer term debate which the new leader will be able to participate in very heavily” as the review process “morphs into a look at wider issues about our political direction, relationships, going back further into history in terms of the trends”, Mr Barnett said.

At the end of that process it should be clear whether there is a need for changes in the Labour Party’s hierarchy and structure.

So far, two candidates have put their hands up for the leadership role: David Cunliffe, who won the last leadership election, only to lead Labour to its worst electoral drubbing in 92 years; and Grant Robertson, who had been previous leader David Shearer’s deputy before losing his bid for the top spot to Mr Cunliffe.

Stuart Nash is also thought to be weighing up his chances.

Acting party leader David Parker ruled himself out of the leadership race last week; when pressed on whether he might reconsider he said he hasn’t changed his mind, although he had been encouraged to stand by some colleagues.

Although Mr Parker has expressed his desire for the leadership contest to be conducted in a "seemly" way, it’s already looking seamy.

Mr Cunliffe has muttered darkly about the danger of being too “beltway”, which was assumed to be a knock on Mr Robertson, a career politician, something Mr Cunliffe denies. It nonetheless elicited a retort from his opponent that he’d been watching too much West Wing.

Mr Robertson, meanwhile, accused Mr Cunliffe of insulting Labour volunteers by suggesting one reason for the party’s election rout was a prioritisation of winning electorates over party votes.

And then Mr Cunliffe’s wife, lawyer Karen Price sailed into the fray, setting up a sort-of-anonymous Twitter account (tip: if you want to be incognito, don’t use your nickname as part of your handle) to attack Mr Cunliffe’s rivals and detractors.

Buckle up – this omnishambles is only going to get bumpier.

ngrant@nbr.co.nz