January 28, 2013
Shearer confident seats there for the taking
Labour leader David Shearer believes his party has the people and the policies needed to win back the Maori vote.
Mr Shearer spend two days at Ratana Pa last week, and says Labour’s relationship with the movement is still important.
He’s not taking Ratana support for granted, but he’s not going to concede the Maori seats to the Maori Party or Mana.
"I'm in the Labour Party and we're out to win seven Maori seats, it's as simple as that. That's the game of poliics and I believe we've got good policies out there better policies than the Maori Party and I believe we have a good chane of winning them back. It's a game where I beleive the Labour Party has something to offer and I hope people see that as well," he says.
Mr Shearer says feedback on the street is that people are now really seeing Labour as a credible alternative.