A recent New Zealand Herald article described Labour and National as taking a break from their ‘happy consensus’ to debate the relatively trivial issues of energy efficient light bulbs and the regulation of hairdressers. ‘Happy consensus’ is a good description of the relationship between New Zealand’s two major parties, the similarities between them are so much that television current affairs host John Campbell compared the choice at this years election to choosing between Coke and Pepsi. Further, Otago University political scientist Bryce Edwards stated in a speech last year that “Politics has moved to the right and there’s a new consensus.” Several recent law changes could be brought up to show this.

Neither party wanting to be seen as soft on crime, the grand coalition passed the Criminal Disclosure bill, which removes the need for a unanimous jury verdicts (replacing it with an 11:1 majority) and creates exemptions to double jeopardy. Both parties also voted for the Summary Offenses (Tagging and Graffiti Vandalism) Amendment Bill, which increases tenfold the fines for ‘tagging’ and makes it illegal to sell spray paint to persons under 18 (something which could be found to violate the Bill of Rights Act). Earlier this year Labour and National voted to amend the Copyright Act, bringing copyright legislation more in line with the US’s draconian intellectual property laws. Perhaps of most concern is that both parties have voted for the first reading of the Immigration Bill, which has been described as a “Human rights nightmare” as the law would give immigration officials greater powers of entry to business premises and private homes as well as enhanced powers of search, seizure and detention without warrant.

The change in government that is predicted by the polls seems somewhat more cosmetic that substantial when voting records are examined. For many New Zealand voters the choice really is, Coke or Pepsi?