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Pussyfooting Around The House

By Our Political Correspondents at Parliament.

The move by strong right-wing members of the National Government to launch an election anti-protest bandwagon is starting to backfire.

The near-fascist ramblings about a "dirty, noisy, scruffy, vicious minority" has caused an uncomfortable feedback from some levels of the party concerned that the MP's over-reaction has gone too far.

The party's Wellington divisional conference threw out strongly-worded law and order remits and chose a more liberal line. This conference is closest to the party administrators who play a major part in the formation of the election manifesto.

Even the Prime Minister's son, through his National party ginger group, has complained about over reaction.

Some electorates have told their local MP that they are concerned at the reaction from the potential young voter.

They are working on the notion that most young voters are not tied to any one party and want to try hard to woo every one of them.

The floating older voters could aldo be put off by the hard line, the electorates have reported.

The justice department is presently studying the laws relating to crimes of violence and laws that can be applied to demonstrators.

But the police are happy with the present situation and were put in an awkward spot when their minister joined the "get tough" parade.

Police officials at the demonstration outside parliament-which politicians have since painted as a large noisy disruptive affair found nothing to get excited about.

They were probably disappointed after the elaborate arrangements made for it-estimated to be the biggest security clamp down at any opening of a New Zealand parliament.

About 300 uniformed and plainclothes police were on duty. There were policemen outside, policemen every few yards inside and even policemen trying to look like construction workers on the beehive site.

Police went through every room before hand so that they could act quickly if there was any bomb hoax. The demonstration was filmed from a window in parliament overlooking the main steps.

But the police over reacted themselves in their preparations and the police vans went away empty.

The move in seizing a chair from one of the demonstrators had appeared to observers to be a sign of frustrated police brought along to stop a nonexistent disturbance. Even some policemen said they had not understood why it was done.

But the action of politicians was even more unbelievable to those who waw the demo.

A hard core in Cabinet has bee pressing for some action against demonstrators a move seen as a good way to divert voters' attention from the economy will still be in the front of the minds of those hardest hit by the time election day comes.

Those who have spoken against demonstrators include Muldoon, McCready and Allen.

There certainly has been a willing audience for their complaints but a lack of moderation in their comments has failed to go down well with important sections of voters.

The same happened with moves last year to clamp down on the "drug menace" as National MP's painted it. Strong measures against "druggies" were mooted in a blaze of emotionalism, then moderated after strong public opposition which surprised the Government.

Labour MP's have been worried that demonstrators could work agains them. They recall the former Prime Minister's election speech in the Auckland Town Hall during the last election campaign which was disrupted by demonstrations. They link that with the drop expected in Labour support in parts of auckland while acknowledging that that was not the only reason.

As soon as opposition leader Kirk entered the House on opening day he condemmed the demonstrators outside. He wanted to get in first in case the National party linked the Labour party with the anti-Government protests.

A Labour spokesman also stole the headlines in describing the Auckland UTA offices bomb throwing as a deplorable act "ahead of the acting prime minister's statement also condemming the incident.

But Labour has been showing a levelheadedness towards the issue compared with a flare of emotionalism from Government speakers.

Pompous Jack, they are calling him. Even his colleagues. The new Justice minister is battling hard even to equal the record set by his predeceo ecessor Dangerous Dan Riddiford — Jack has been elevated from the high position of Speaker of the House of Representatives to that of Justice Minister. And he is letting people know it. At cabinet meetings, his high handed approach and his insistence about still laying down the rules instead of engaging in reasoned debate, is causing him to be rather unpopular among some sections of Government.

Quotes for the Week:

"The educational institute estimates that something like 45,000 children are being educated in room said to be inadequate. It is therefore clear that over 400,000 children are being well housed..." The Minister of Education, Mr Pickering.

"It would be most unfortunate if in the political life of New Zealand, there appeared the equvilant of the political bikie-one who recklessly attacks the man and not his policies uncaring of what personal damage he does..." Labour MP for Grey Lynn, Eddie Isbey. addressing a rotary club.

"This is a time when we want an increasing New Zealand involvement and wood use is one thing in which New Zealanders certainly excel.." Labour spokesman on forestry. Mat Rata, discussing the possibility of tenders being called for world wide long term beech forest cutting rights; "You call that a demonstration?" a CIA agent, one of many in parliamentary corridors watching a small demo during Connelly's visit on Friday.