New Zealand just elected a conservative-led government. What does that mean? How will it affect the GLBT people of New Zealand? Will our rights be under threat? I talk about all that today, as well as some of the good things to come from the election (yes, there were some).
Links for this episode:
Preliminary 2008 NZ Election Results
The GayNZ.com article about the NZ election: Change isn’t always a bad thing
Lesbian Couple Violently Assaulted In Front Of Children
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I’m glad to hear that voting in a conservative government in NZ doesn’t necessarily mean socially conservative. I’d say you guys are lucky in that respect. Fiscally conservative is fine as long as people aren’t denied services they need, etc. Congrats on the election going okay.
I too had little idea how those Commonnwealth elections worked – one of your guests mentioned a “riding”, and I thought he was talking horses – but now that I have Arthur and his pals to explain it all, I’m almost semi-coherent about the process.
Archerr: The new Prime Minister, John Key, has worked hard to pull his party back toward the centre, and so far he seems to have succeeded.
Roger: The best thing to keep in mind, I think, is that among countries with Westminster-style constitutional monarchies (especially New Zealand, Australia, Canada, UK), the overall process is very similar, though specific details and terminology may vary. So, once you get the overall system you pretty much understand the gist of how governing works in several different countries.
But, I glad I helped!