I may be wrong but . . . .

Apropos of nothing much else in particular, I’m posting a brief note registering approval of the way Steven Joyce is going about his job.

Steven is the Minister for Quite a Few Things in the current NZ government, it seems, including infrastructure, communications and transport. When he was first appointed I was one of many I know who were rather apprehensive, given his reputation leading up to the last elections for “astute” right-wing political dealings.

For all I know (not having met him or seen him in person), he may be an expert in back-room political machinations, or he may be a humble, thoughtful but direct man. His demeanour on television and radio certainly suggests the latter.

What I do want to praise is the unusually honest way he deals with the electronic media whenever he’s interviewed. A real breath of fresh air. I’m becoming increasingly weary of politicians and public officials who have clearly been taught the standard avoidance technique, the “What I can tell you … ” ploy:

“And Mr Official, does this mean that you will be changing the procedure to speed up the service within the next few months?”

“Mr Interviewer, what I can tell you is that we are committed to providing the fastest possible service.”

“So will it be a few months or a few years before the procedure is changed?”

“What I can tell you is that going forward changes will be made that the public will really like.”

Joyce is one of the few politicians I’ve heard in ages who simply answers the question, without a hint of pre-assembled on-message preaching in sound bites (as per Phil Goff), jovial but evasive near-enough truths (a la John Key) or straight-out avoidance of saying anything factual that might come back to haunt them (pretty much every other NZ politician).

For all I know, this may be a technique Joyce uses to disarm his interviewers or opponents. But I still want to record that I appreciate his style of politics. He comes across as confident and unflustered, seems to have an astute brain, clearly works hard, has avoided scandals so far, and has a physical presence.

For the record, I also agree with many of the things he’s introducing to the governing policy mix, including much of the changes to the problematic road safety rules.