John Elliott: Vernon Cava launches Sustainable New Zealand Party

Most recently, Vernon Tava was a member of the Waitemata Local Board. He has had central government ambitions for some years.

Tava, as a Green Party member, stood for the male co-leadership when James Shaw won. Part of his policy pitch on that occasion was that the Greens did themselves a disservice by positioning themselves to the left of Labour, precluding any possibility that they could go with National in an MMP coalition. Tava’s mantra was that many environmental issues were neither left nor right, and if New Zealand wanted to protect its precious flora and fauna, a party more directed to environmental policies than social justice ones, could partner with either major party in New Zealand.

The Green Party firmly rejected that view, stating that National’s economic policies were incompatible with Green principles around inequality, social justice and fairness.

More recently, Tava was nominated for National in the Northcote by-election. He was not successful.

The Sustainable New Zealand policy priority is ‘the environment’.

The three top priorities are:

1. Safe, healthy water that sustains life.

2. Save our native species from extinction.

3. Create sustainable economic growth.

Vernon Tava is a highly intelligent law graduate from Auckland University. He speaks and writes well. He is more quiet and thoughtful rather than flamboyant.

So where will this new party get its votes and how successful will it be?

Tava’s belief that environmental issues are neither left nor right is problematic. While major parties of both stripes push the mantra of perennial growth, the environment, on a finite planet, can not sustain this obsession with growth. National still has so many irons in the fire of economic growth using oil, gas and coal, it is hard to see anything other than mostly green wash coming from that party.

National wants to further reform (some want to abolish) the Resource Management Act, which does provide some safeguards against unwise development. Where it is possible to bowl over hundreds of trees in the pursuit of the almighty dollar, including coastal pohutukawa, the environment will always suffer. Under National, the Resource Management Act will become the Resource Development Act, and Tava’s saving of flora and fauna bid will be impossible.

How will Tava’s new party stop that in the interest of endangered species?

It may be politically unhelpful for the environment for the Greens to sit to the left of Labour, giving them few coalition options, but so many of their important social justice policies are integrally tied to environmental concerns. A fair and just society, for all living creatures, is not just about making money.

Certainly, sustainability is best decoupled from economic growth.

I recommend Vernon Tava reads and absorbs Tim Jackson’s excellent book, ‘Prosperity Without Growth’, which tackles this issue. Jackson is Professor of Sustainable Development at the University of Surrey, UK, and Director of the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity. Jackson’s book has received plaudits from some top international figures like Naomi Klein, Herman Daly, Noam Chomsky, Clive Hamilton and Bill McKibben, among many others.

I wish Vernon well. He may cannibalise the green vote, hopefully not to under 5%, and will probably pinch environmentally interested voters from National – some of the so-called blue-greens.

The remaining question is whether a party will offer him a seat, a la ACT in Epsom, so he does not need 5% to enter parliament and be a coalition partner.

(JOHN ELLIOTT)

www.sustainablenz.org.nz