9780864693419 - Electoral and Constitutional Change in New Zealand: an Mmp Source Books (1 results)

Paperback. Condition: Good. 497 pages. Cover wornVoting systems are not usually the subje ct of editorials, letter-to-the-editor and petitions. MMP is the exception. Yet the move to a new electoral system for New Zealand was not entered into lightly or rapidly. This book provides a documentary record of the process of electoral reform and its con sequences. The years of debate and deliberation involved a Royal Commission, two referendums and the writing of a new Electoral Ac t. But there was much more, including court cases on the enrolmen t of Maori voters; the drawing up of new electorate boundaries fo r the whole country; the drafting of new selection rules by polit ical parties for their electorate and party-list candidates. Th is collection of documents traces the story of MMP from the Royal Commission's proposals through the break-up of the National-New Zealand First Coalition. The coalition agreements between Jim Bol ger and Winston Peters, and between Jenny Shipley and the defecto rs from New Zealand First are both published in this volume. Othe r documents focus on the resignation of Alamein Kopu from the All iance - and what, if anything should have been done about it - as well as the wider impact of MMP on New Zealand's politics and la w-making - on Parliament, Cabinet and the public service. Chang es to the honours system, the role of the Governor-General and to New Zealand's highest court are among the broader constitutional topics in this reference source. The final section of the book b rings together speeches and proposals envisaging a New Zealand re public in the new Millennium. A companion to The New Zealand Po litics Source Book (now in its third edition), this collection of primary materials will be invaluable for anyone interested in a serious answer to the most important question being asked about M MP - how did it happen? Editorial Reviews About the Author Jona than Boston is Professor Public Policy in the School of Business and Public Management at Victoria University of Wellington. He ha s published widely on various aspects of New Zealand Politics, pu blic management, higher education and social policy. He is a memb er of the New Zealand Political Change Project, a multi-year rese arch programme (funded by the Foundation for Research, Science an d Technology) examining the impact of proportional representation on New Zealand's political institutions and ploicy processes. Th e members of the Project are the co-authors of New Zealand Under MMP: A New Politics? (Auckland University Press, 1996), for which they received the inaugural Wallace Award from the Electoral Com mission in recognition of their significant contribution to publi c understanding of electoral matters. Stephen Levine is Associa te Professor and Head of the School of Political Science and Inte rnational Relations at Victoria University of Wellington. He is D irector of the New Zealand Political Change Project, a co-editor of the New Zealand Politics Source Book (Dunmore Press, 1992, 199 4 and 1999) and a co-editor of New Zealand's politics journal, Po litical Science. With Elizabeth McLeay he is General Editor of th e School's Occational Publications Series, whose latest book (edi ted by Alan Simpton) is The Constitutional Implications of MMP (D unmore Press, 1998). Elizabeth McLeay is Associate Professor of the School of Political Science and International Relations at V ictoria University of Wellington. Recent publications include The Cabinet and Political Power in New Zealand (Oxford University Pr ess, 1995). With the other members of the New Zealand politcal Ch ange Project she was a co-editor of (and contributor to) From Cam paign to Coalition: New Zealand's First General Election Under Pr oportional Representation (Dunmore Press, 1997) and has published articles on the political representation of Maori and women, com parative public policy, housing, and policing policy. She was a f ounder of the New Zealand Politics Research Grou.