Barry Soper: Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent on Green MP Benjamin Doyle's resignation

Green MP Benjamin Doyle has resigned from parliament – citing threats against them and their family as the reason behind this decision.  

They served as New Zealand’s first non-binary member of parliament and will give their final valedictory on September 18th. 

The fallout from a controversial social media post followed Doyle through their time as an MP, and senior political correspondent Barry Soper says the controversy was more impactful than Doyle’s time in parliament. 

‘The only thing they've done is be the first non-binary person that's entered the corridors of power in parliament, and that's about it.’ 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Really weird, really weird theory about why Nichola Willis is
getting attacked has popped up in the media. Today'll run
you through that shortly thirteen away from five and Barry Soaper,
senior political correspondence with Us Hallo barring, good afternoon, Heaven
so boss, he's gone, Yes he is.

Speaker 2 (00:14):
He's not a great contribution to politics, done well. The
only thing that I've done is been the first non
binary person that's entered the corridors of power and Parliament.
And that's about it, because if you look at anything else,
there's no there's nothing, there's nothing that he has or

(00:35):
sheet sorry, they have done, and only to confuse us
about what you can call them.

Speaker 1 (00:42):
I'm not trying to be funny, you are the BSA
comes in.

Speaker 2 (00:48):
I've never heard the light just before.

Speaker 1 (00:50):
The BSA comes in. That wasn't a joke, that was.

Speaker 2 (00:53):
So yeah, yes exactly, I mean totally confused about what
you call them. So they are going to give their
final teledictory on September the eighteenth, help you out exactly,
which I must really tune in for because it will
be absolutely fascinating and thank goodness, we've passed that era

(01:14):
and let's hope nothing more comes of it or into
Parliament as a result of it. Anyway, the next person
that'll come in on the list for the Greens is
a chap called Mike Davidson from christ Church. Now, he
was a semi counselor in christ Church for six years.
He's not non binary. He's a normal seems quite a

(01:34):
normal fellow. He's got an environmental science degree, so he's
well suited to the Greens and he'll be the next
to be sworn in.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
He looks actually quite boring for the Greens.

Speaker 2 (01:47):
Well, totally after Danna Darlene Tana that Benjamin took over from.
You know, now you've got this Mike Davidson.

Speaker 1 (01:55):
Now, look, it appears to be quite clear that the
Greens have told Bussy to go right.

Speaker 2 (02:00):
Oh, I think probably yes, because he has been very embarrassing,
not just the fact that he's really done nothing since
he's been there other than stood looking rather flamboyant in
the outfits that he tends to weird about.

Speaker 1 (02:15):
Okay, so can you just update us on the tamak
Tamaki Makoto by election.

Speaker 2 (02:19):
Well, it's incredible when you think about it. Tomorrow is
voting day. Don't forget there are eighty four places in
the electorate that people can turn out to vote. They've
hardly been rushed off their feet in that electorate though,
when you consider that last night the latest count for
the forty four thousand registered voters in the electorate was

(02:41):
nine hundred and thirty two. I think they're all down
at to Rangawai Wai watching the Queen's first speech of
the year. That was all done in Maldi. So I
watched it. It was seemed to be quite impressive, but unfortunately,
not being a special language.

Speaker 1 (02:57):
The fact that she can speak Marif fluently is actually something, right,
because I don't think her dad could.

Speaker 2 (03:03):
No, he couldn't, No, he couldn't. So yeah, I guess
that's something. But it would have been nice for her
to give us a bit of an English translation as well.
But still it's not for us, it's for Maldy and
it's probably fair enough.

Speaker 1 (03:14):
Yeah, Matthew Houghton then go.

Speaker 2 (03:16):
On, oh honestly, well, you know, I mean Houghton has
never limited himself to simply commenting on politics. He's been
involved in politics with leadership. I mean the spill in
twenty twenty that saw Simon Bridges ousted by Todd Muller.

(03:36):
Matthew Houghton went on to work for Todd Muller as
an advisor.

Speaker 1 (03:40):
Of He didn't go on to he was busy orchestrated.

Speaker 2 (03:42):
Well, yes he was. So he's a participant in it
and Goodness only knows why he's seen as an impartial
observer when he has attacked most National leaders in recent years.
They've been under attack at one stage or another, and
it's a bit like, you know, any commentary of the sort.
I doubt, well, I have total doubt that anybody has

(04:04):
ever told them that Luxon is about to be rolled,
which is what if you read his column you'd expect
to happen next Tuesday. I've talked to a number of
people in the National Party. They know that a disunified
party going into an election year is one that will
probably lose the election. And I think they have discussed

(04:24):
the polls in the caucus meeting and they say, the
people that I've talked to that the polling they polled
thirty eight percent at the last election. They say they're
polling showing them they've dropped three percent. So they're not
as bad as some polls have been showing, but look,
next year is the year and they'll be, no doubt

(04:45):
hoping this dark winter for them will live cleared up
and the economy will be looking better.

Speaker 1 (04:51):
Good stuff, very well, Rap the political week that was
later with you just after quarter past six, very so,
per senior political correspondent. For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive,
listen live to news Talks. It'd be from four pm weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.