Simon Bridges

[reigns]

Another view of Simon Bridges.

https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/18-03-...eans-to-me

"My reaction? DonÔÇÖt let the Beehive doors hit you on the way out.

Simon BridgesÔÇÖ departure from politics, to me, is the exit of the most prominent politician to consistently vote against the rights of queer people in my adult lifetime. He might have equivocated about his vote against marriage equality in Express magazine years later, saying that he ÔÇ£got it wrongÔÇØ and ÔÇ£New Zealand has moved onÔÇØ, but the ink on his vote against the conversion therapy bill is barely dry. The bill, which has now thankfully passed, bans practices that aim to change a personÔÇÖs sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

What I can speak to are these facts: Simon Bridges voted consistently against the rights of queer people. When presented with the option to make things equitable for queer people in our society, he chose not to."

Actually, having read that now.. While I still hopes he enjoys being relieved of the pressure of politics, I am quite comfortable with him no longer being in parliament.

Whatever his reasons (I believe him when he says he is just looking for a change), he's had a pretty long innings in Parliament and he's achieved a lot for someone his age. I haven't been his biggest fan (had policy advisor friends who, when he was first starting out, were extremely critical of his competency) but he's had his fair share of knocks and detractors. I know that comes with the job so for now, at least, I hope he gets a decent wave of relief on exiting politics and can focus on enjoying his personal life a bit more.

Wonder if he was more suited to just being a local constituent MP. There's nothing wrong with just focusing on your electorate, and it's way more useful than spending large parts of your day bossing about West Coast list MPs.

On a national level, he was pretty ineffectual. Probably operated best when he was angry, but whenever he did, he came across as a petulant toddler throwing his toys out of the playpen. Optically, it's not what people were looking for in a leader.

I'm personally of the opinion that electorates should only be contested by independent candidates. I'd rather not have electorate MPs be dictated to by anyone other than the constituents they represent.