95bFM Decision on extending the term of parliament could be up to the public
8 June, 2023
Interview by Simon Wraight, adapted by David Liwei Shi
A referendum could be held on whether to extend the term of parliament after the recommendation of a government-commissioned panel of experts. Photo: Mahdhi Osman-Penrice.
Aotearoa is one of the few nations to have a three-year parliamentary term.
But the Independent Electoral Review considering public submissions on how to make Aotearoa’s electoral system “fairer, clearer, and more accessible” has proposed a referendum to consider whether we should make the time between elections four years instead of three.
Political commentator Grant Duncan told 95bFM’s The Wire, that the public may reject another referendum, particularly in the aftermath of the euthanasia and legalising cannabis referendums.
“A certain cynicism sets in, people would ask why we are asking this; don’t you have something more important to think about, etc.”
But Duncan believes this reform is necessary to give new governments ample time to make decisions and be held accountable for their performance.
“Part of the problem is, every election means a lot of downtime because the government needs to customarily stop making important decisions as the election is approaching."
“Public servants start to pull back on their recommendations and work, Christmas comes, and people go on holiday.”
This isn’t the first time the issue has been raised in Aotearoa; two public referendums were held in 1967 and 1999. But both were rejected by the public, with a two-thirds majority voting to keep the parliamentary term at three years.
Extending the time between elections to four years was also recommended in 1986 by the World Commission.
Changes to the electoral system can be made by parliament but requires a 75% majority vote to pass.
“I wouldn’t be terribly confident it would pass," Duncan said. “But I like to think it’s possible there would be a 75% majority in the house.”
Aside from a longer parliamentary term, Duncan would like to see a lower voting age and a 3.5 percent party threshold implemented, which was also recommended by the electoral review.
Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
