HardTalk With John Key

BBC’s Stephen Sackur tackles PM John Key in London in a 25 minute interview for HardTalk (Part 1, Part 2). Positioning New Zealand as “very small” and “too small”, Sackur takes an aggressive approach to several issues: economic prospects following the Christchurch earthquake; wage gap with Australia; Chinese investment in New Zealand’s primary sector; relationships with the USA and UK; the flow of New Zealanders out of the country; and whether the Key government is reformist. In reply PM Key cited a “very strong” commodity sector in dairy, forestry, beef, lamb and seafood and that New Zealand has “an important role in feeding the world”; that the relationship with the US was never better even though the anti-nuclear legislation “was entrenched in the DNA of New Zealand”; that “the Queen is much loved by in New Zealand” and that “Prince Charles will make a fine King”; that overseas investment was to be encouraged when it added value and innovation; and that New Zealand wants immigrants that have “skills, capital, and attitude.” Sackur’s most stinging questions came about the credibility of New Zealand’s 100% Pure brand, citing a recent op-ed in the NZ Herald by environmental scientist Mike Joy that “we are delusional about how clean and green we are.” The report points to heavy pollution in the majority of our lakes and lowland rivers due to intensive dairy farming, depleted and threatened native species, complacency at all levels of government and society, and the impact of rising population. PM Key, who is also Minister of Tourism, disagreed with the assertions and defended the environmental record, saying that “for the most part we are 100% pure.”