There's policy, John, but not as we know it

So National has some policy detail after all - it's just that we can't have it.

I'm grateful to the Herald's Colin James, who has revealed the existence of a document backing up some of National's industrial relations policy-ette, which runs to all of a page.

His column this week has prompted demands from the unions and from Trevor Mallard to come clean and release the rest of the details.  

Unfortunately, it appears James didn't get it quite right - at least according to John Key's office, which has just told me that there is NO 34-page policy document on industrial relations. It is, in fact, a 14-page document that simply backgrounds previous changes in industrial law, according to Key's office.  

I'm unsure whether this is supposed to make me feel better or not. Personally I would have been happier to know that National had done more work in this area, even if it wouldn't release it.

I'm wondering if the same goes for the absence of solid research and background work backing up National's one-and-a-half-page broadcasting policy, its two-pager on ACC, its one-page early childhood education policy, and its half-page outdoor recreation policy?

I saw Jonathan Coleman being interviewed by Dick Driver on Alt TV last night (pleased to see National's spokespeople are still allowed on regional television) and he did an admirable job of defending National's lack of detailed policy discussion.

But the fact remains that even National supporters are getting frustrated. David Farrar, surely one of National's in-crowd, writes on his blog that he would like to see the background papers released as well - not because he believes they have anything to hide, but rather to put to bed any suggestion that the party might have.

Frankly I couldn't see any other reason for not releasing the papers. The last one we got was the ill-fated health policy of Tony Ryall's, which failed to mention National's plans to scrap the automatic fee review on GP charges. Press conferences on policy releases stopped abruptly then too.

But surely National is confident enough in its own policy positions for them to be debated in public? I understand it wanting to hold on to its tax policy until the election. But smaller policies which have already been released should be accompanied by the background detail.

As Farrar himself says, 99 per cent of the public won't read it anyway. But the media will, and so will National's opponents. But at least National can't then be accused  of hiding anything. Otherwise, the question that is begged is that there are things in those documents that National is worried might frighten the horses.

It must be frustrating for the spokespeople themselves, too. I hear Simon Power did an excellent job on his law and order policy, which ran to many pages and contained a lot of background detail and reading. It has never been published, so no one gets to see Power's work.

There has been rumours that these will all be published closer to the election. Presumably at a time when there is so much else happening that no one has the time to go and read them carefully.

Right now would be good, since it would give the press gallery something to do besides chasing Winston Peters around the building, which frankly I'm getting very tired of. There are hopes that he may provide further details today, but I've heard that so many times before I've given up much hope.

ACT leader Rodney Hide has now complained to the Serious Fraud Office, but this is simply a stunt, albeit a funny one. It seems to me the only hope of rekindling the issue now is if Speaker Margaret Wilson decides to send him to the privileges committee, but my money is still on her finding a reason not to do that.

By the way, I hear that the announcement that former campaign manager and Exclusive Brethren bagman Steven Joyce will get a list-only placing has gone down like a lump of lead with National's caucus. Half of them are grumpy because they don't like his methods and the other half because he's leap-frogged them into Parliament without having to do any work.

Apparently Murray McCully is worried that there will be alternative to the role of "Dark Prince'' of the National Party. And to rub salt into the wound, Joyce was there on Tuesday to brief them all on campaign strategy, since he remains the campaign chairman. And the head of Jasons Media. Wonder if he'll find any time to campaign himself or whether he'll just be leaving that to his colleagues.