The Condundrum of David Seymour

Plus Sinead Boucher, Luke Malpass, And Pink

A prior version of this article incorrectly named Bryce Edwards, not Wilkinson.

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Stuff’s Political Editor Luke Malpass - A Fellow at New Zealand Iniative

Last week I half-joked that Stuff / The Post’s Luke Malpass¹ always sounded like he was auditioning for a job at the New Zealand Initiative.

Well it turns out that Malpass was an actual “Fellow” of the Atlas Network’s New Zealand Initiative (formerly Business Roundtable).

You might remember that Jordan Williams from Taxpayers Union is also some type of “Fellow” for the Atlas Network.

And Mr Seymour was awarded an “MBA” from Atlas Network in 2008.

It’s kind of like how at some companies everyone is a “Vice President” or a “consultant” or a “Director” - it gives them a gravitas they otherwise wouldn’t possess.

And is part of the think tank repetoire to elevate & credentialise voices and people that share its objectives.

In the past, Malpass has partnered with folks like Bryce Wilkinson to produce studies - example this one on foreign capital (2012).

Speaking about the Overseas Investment Act (OIA), Malpass noted:

"Bluntly put, New Zealand relies more than any other OECD country on ministries and ministers second-guessing investment intentions and possible outcomes, and on the most contrived criteria,"

The act introduced a "sensitive land" category on any land over 5ha or 0.4ha near water.

"The definition of sensitive land is absurdly broad," he said

That sounds like the commentary David Seymour and Christopher Luxon use - last year proclaiming changes to the OIA that I personally find bizarre for its lack of controversy in the media.

Sell her off! Remove constraints on the wealthy! Reduce due diligence! Take their word for it! Remove protections from our sensitive and limited lands!

No-one cares because we aren’t being told to care by the media and lobbyists - unlike the numerous headlines in the past lamenting how much of our country was being bought by the wealthy.

Now it’s different

But just like the “dangerous legal strait jacket”, the Regulatory Standards Bill, originally drafted by NZ Initiatve / Business Roundtables’s Bryce Wilkinson, it appears that after over a decade and more of lobbying, Seymour, Luxon and Peters are paving the way for the Business Roundtable to see all their wishes realised.

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Sinead Boucher - Right Wing Lobby Group Member

Article

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The Conundrum of David Seymour

Today, it’s revealed that David Seymour personally lobbied a top cop in support of Auckland opthalmologist Philip Polkinghorne.

At the time of the letter (2022), Polkinghorne was being investigated by Auckland police for the murder of his wife, Pauline Hanna.

Seymour wrote a detailed account for his valued “constituent”, blasting police for inappropriate conduct, invading Pokinghorne’s privacy, breaching his rights, and other assertions.

For example:

“At the police station Mr Polkinghorne was asked what he thought was to be some supplementary questions, but this evolved into a prolonged interview lasting some four hours.”

Four hours - imagine the horror.

Police interview

I don’t recall Mr Seymour speaking up for Golriz Ghahraman, a woman he publicly called a “menace to freedom in this country”, who then had white supremacists plotting her murder in detail.

Or him speaking up when police tried to get her pinged for putting goods in a tote in her trolley, well away from check out counters.

Police then “decided not to charge Ms Ghahraman” - not very magnanimous or OK - you can’t charge a customer for putting things in a trolley well away from any check out counter and police should know that, despite someone leaking that to Leo Molloy and subsequently getting that rumour published in papers like Stuff and NZ Herald.

Naturally, Mr Seymour is “standing by” his letter helping Polkinghorne after NZ Herald’s Carolyn Meng-Yee investigated.

It speaks to a core strategy of this government, which is never admit error, never back down.

But there is a greater conundrum with Mr Seymour.

His fiance (Congratulations to the happy couple) and his spirited advocacy for Philip Polkinghorne speaks to a different world for the well heeled.

I watched a short video where his fiance was speaking to an Auckland financial company which hosts podcasts, and it was clear to me that Seymour’s influence e.g. through Mr Seymour’s apparent friendliness with this Lighthouse Financial, was helping her marketing advocacy

I don’t begrudge that influence, but I did take note of the world in which they seem to live, whereby their mission appears to be helping the wealthiest of folks - including foreigners - to do better - and therefore, help themselves prosper too.

And it’s fine to a degree - everyone has a right in our world to choose their own values. I also don’t begrudge anyone’s success within legitimate means - but it’s the ongoing lack of empathy and care that brings it all to some form of policy imbalance.

The conundrum of David Seymour is the realisation that what energises and brings him success is the amount of attention and discussion he evokes.

A few days ago, those on the left celebrated an exchange Guy William’s had with the ACT Party leader, where Williams asked Seymour why he was spreading misinformation, for example. - and those on the right celebrated David Seymour’s “knock out” of “woke” Williams.

Madeleine Chapman from the Spinoff, who has broken important stories such as our Human Rights & Race Relations Commissioner failing the interview process but being appointed anyway - got a round copping by some for daring to suggest that Williams didn’t do journalism a service.

I could see both sides.

I had already noticed how ACT used and uses every confrontation as a marketing boost for Seymour.

The video about Williams garnered a record ~100,000 views for ACT - with many confirming this as “woke” uninformed and unreasonable people going after Seymour, when all his bleeding heart wants to do is promote “equality” and fight against “racism”.

i.e. It’s a great opportunity for Seymour to sell himself to many who just don’t follow politics closely and believe his narratives.

He can use these videos to form an emotional connection.

But I can also understand why so many of us, fed up with Seymour’s teflon and light touch, were happy to see Guy Williams have an honest crack at it.

Likewise, when Seymour’s microphone was removed at Waitangi Day and backs turned on him gracefully in protest - well, Seymour was already prepared and had a microphone on him to ensure continuity of service for his ACT video.

He then used that as an opportunity to show his supporters how ‘unhinged and rude’ his opposers are…

If you’re getting heated, I understand - it’s not a great game, but it’s the one Seymour and his ilk play every single day.

And we can’t say it’s ineffective.

As the good Nicky Hager wrote - “Dirty Politics”.

Seymour has the Trump card in miniature version. He has money, backers, donors, who are getting wealthier and more powerful as we speak/read.

And like Trump, media and commentators like to cover him because its dramatic, controversial, and he gets clicks.

At the same time, Seymour feeds off this energy.

He is boistered by our outrage, and seems to thrive on PR ready moments that he uses to promote himself.

Last year, he and his party “faced off” to the historica Hikoi by standing miles apart from crowds - surrounded by security guards while looking stoic for their ACT Party production cameras.

Seymour then gave a speech for the ACT video, and the cowards then scuttled back into Parliament House without any genuine interaction at all.

At the time, one headline noted protestors observing Seymour and his gang came out for a few minutes before scuttling back in.

This is how they marketed it -

That’s why I think Willie Jackson’s upcoming debate with Seymour is ill-advised. Jackson will be declared a victor from Seymour opposers, and Seymour will use plenty of clips to show up the weakness of his critics.

Seymour’s target isn’t you or me - it’s the millions of undecided, apathetic, or non political folks that help win elections like Voice Australia, Brexit and Trump.

To cover or not to cover.

Thank God it’s Sunday.

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Did you know?

Donald Trump has signed an executive order ordering the prioritisation of “white” South Africans to be effectively rescued from what he calls “racism” against them in South Africa.

This came after South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said his country would not be ‘bullied’.

Many will link it all to Elon Musk, a wealthy South African expatriate, but if you read my recent article, you will notice the links to allies of Seymour and Taxpayers Union, who call for our colonial hisotory to be effectively downplayed, and for the white history and race to be exemplified.

Like Hitler did, the support appears one sided towards the supremacy of the white person.

And when we hear the words, “we’ve had enough of racism” in New Zealand, it’s often the right invoking anger around policies designed to address systemic inequalities borne by generations of injustice.

At least that’s my taken - and hopefully I’m wrong because the implications of it are very disturbing.

Back to Trump, the Independent (UK) writes about the story:

Afrikaners, architects of the historically brutal discriminatory system of apartheid in South Africa, would be resettled in America through the U.S. refugee program…

Trump accused the South African government in his order of discriminating against the white Afrikaaners, descendants of the largely Dutch colonists who arrived in the country in the 1600s and imposed apartheid against the overwhelming majority of Blacks living there until the 1990s…

Afrikaners, who make up only 8 percent of the population, own three-fourths of the country’s farmland, while Blacks, who comprise 80 percent of the population, own just 4 percent of agricultural land, according to the country’s 2017 land audit…

South Africa is a constitutional democracy that is deeply rooted in the rule of law, justice and equality. The South African government has not confiscated any land.

Trump’s also frozen aid to South Africa as well.

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Music - Cover Me in Sunshine by Pink

1. I stopped reading him as I personally found every article of his sounded like a National Party press release - rather than any appropriate analysis I’d expect of a political editor.

In 2019, he was appointed to Stuff. Editorial director Mark Stevens claimed Malpass was an “impressive candidate, in what was a highly competitive field.”