Dave Gee: Life from Right Field

PM Hillin Cluck has this afternoon announced her minority coalition Government will go to the polls on November 8th.

This is the second last weekend Labour could possibly have chosen for the General Election, with the last legal option (November 15th) being a major holiday weekend in Canterbury (traditional Labour territory), following the NZ Cup and Show week.

During Cluck's NZ election date announcement, Cluck attacked her major rival John Key and his National Party, claiming he has a "secret agenda" (We Wish!), and went through a list of Labour's "achievements"/failures over the last 9 (NINE!) years.

The US General Election is set down for Tuesday November 4th, so that is likely to take some of the media focus away from domestic politics a little in the fortnight before New Zealand's General Election.

The Labour leader said her party will be rolling out their new policies over the coming weeks (after spending the last week rolling out National's limp-wristed excuses for "policies").

Labour is hoping the fairly long election campaign, and factors like Commie Cullen's tax cuts and recent interest rate falls, will help pull the party back into contention.

It remains to be seen if New Zealand voters are as easily fooled as the Labour Party believes...

The response from National's John Key is due at 3.30 this afternoon.