Moments before Mark Mitchell emerged as National’s fourth leadership contender, his people at the Orewa Surf Club wheeled out a little 4WD towing a surf lifesaving rescue boat.
Mitchell came around the corner, shook the hand of the on-hand celebrity Zac Franich, the club’s head coach who happens to also be The Bachelor, and marched confidently to the spot for his launch press conference.
He started with an informal apology to the parliamentary press gallery in Wellington for having held this announcement in Orewa, 30 minutes north of the Auckland Harbour Bridge. The effect was that he had to face a B-list or C-list of political journalists, which might have made his first campaign outing a little easier.
Mitchell is a confident and affable bloke, open-neck shirt, with his wife Peggy Bourne beside him and with that smoke-grey hair and olive complexion of a younger Doug Graham.
The setting was important to him. He’s patron of the surf club, they’re his people in his home town in the heart of his Rodney electorate. Media who had set up cameras 20 metres further along the beachfront were re-directed by his campaign guy to the exact point Mitchell would stand, so the water and the Whangaparaoa Peninsula headland, 4WD and inflatable boat could sit nicely in shot behind him. Not for him the posse of MP backers like Amy Adams had employed. Or the parliamentary foyer deployed by Simon Bridges. Judith Collins had no frivolous event – just a tweet, a statement and media interviews.
Here Mitchell was, in his outdoors setting, man of action, man of the people.
Mitchell’s entry in the race brings in a less experienced MP, having had just two terms, and a minister for less than a year at the tail-end of the Key-English government.
The 49 year-old is not interested in ‘generational change’ however. Citing Prime Minister Jacinda’s statement that now was the time for her generation, he said: “I believe if you want to lead a country you lead for every generation. You don’t pick a generation because that’s the easiest way to create division.”
“I’m entering the race because I want to win,” he said, answering up-front the theory that he is simply raising his name-recognition for next time National looks for salvation, or for the consolation prize of the deputy leadership.
“What sets me apart is I have a very strong history of strong proven leadership. And I’m serious about holding this shambolic government to account.”
He claims to have been approached to consider standing by colleagues about three weeks ago, before the English resignation but not aimed at challenging him.
He wouldn’t say if any were senior MPs or former cabinet ministers, or if he was the candidate for the newbies of 2014 and 2017.
“The reason why I’m putting myself up for leadership is I want us to be a better country and I think we can be.”
Other contenders have been asked by the A-list political reporters to sum up their candidacy in a word. Mitchell offered “strong leadership” and when reminded that is two words, he settled for just “leadership”. When standing for leader, that’s important.
He regards himself as a “kind conservative”. He described Bill English as “strong, steady and compassionate”.
Noting English had six children and he had five, he said: “You can tell we’re good Irish Catholics.”
What does “kind conservative” mean?
“I’m very much a pragmatist. I guess a couple of things important to me is where you can you should always give people choice in their life. I don’t like government becoming too involved in people’s lives. But I guess there’s also a conservative part of me in that I want to be very careful that we don’t start doing things that could risk bringing harm into people’s lives.”
Asked what he would deliver if selected, Mitchell said: “I’m not scared of taking on an opponent and that is going to be critically important in taking on this government.”
That is Collins’ big calling card but he didn’t consider he would split the caucus vote with her and would not be using the controversial political operative Simon Lusk, who has been associated with both of them in the past.
“I’m very lucky that I have a good team around me. Clark Hennessy, who was my adviser when I was Minister of Defence, has very kindly stepped in to help.”
(Hennessy was National’s campaign communications director and was one of the six ex-ministers or staff fingered by Winston Peters in an abortive court action to try to find out how details of his national superannuation overpayment was made public.)
Asked what National must do to make Labour a one-term government: “Number one is to hold them to account… we’re already starting to see cracks in the air. You’ve got seven percent starting to control 34 percent. Those tensions are going to continue to grow. All we’ve seen so far is a whole lot of words.”
He cited Labour’s problems with the parliamentary nomination for Speaker and then confusion over its coalition partners’ positions on the so-called ‘waka jumping’ law as evidence of the government’s early shambles. “If you are going to get simple things like that wrong then it’s not a good way to start and not a good way to signal what’s coming in the next two years.”
Is he, as suggested in his media profiles, Peters-friendly? “I am. I’m captain of the Parliamentary rugby team and Winston is our media liaison officer. Look, Winston is on notice. If I am successful in the leadership then he is in government and I am in opposition. We are going to hold him to account.”
Asked if, as a former policeman-turned-security consultant in Iraq, he had any skeletons he was worried could come out and be used against him, Mitchell said:
“No not at all. I’m sure that will be studied in great depth. I’m very proud of the work we did overseas. Very demanding and very difficult.”
He predicted a close race as National was spoiled for choice and had 56 MPs. He said he had “strong support…. In caucus”.
But everyone is saying they’ve got some numbers. Someone is being misled.
In Orewa, Mitchell has some profile and a small and loyal band of supporters at the surf club yesterday. The Bachelor was there because he was head coach at the club. “I support him in his role and I’m sure he will support me in this role.”
The little 4WD and its trailer, and Zac for that matter, disappeared inside as soon as the cameras were turned off.
