Politics on this side of the Tasman was pushed well into the background over the last week as the Australian election dominated headlines.
Saturday night's landslide by Labor's Kevin Rudd over John Howard will be picked up upon by National leader John Key as a portent for the future over here as 'new' and 'fresh' beats experience.
Meanwhile, Labour Party leaders will have to build a new relationship, which will have a long way to go to reach the levels of familiarity attained between Helen Clark and Howard, who both steadfastly refused to comment on the other's domestic policies, which at times verged on being polar opposite.
Agriculture
One relationship that is unlikely to ever get off the ground is between Minister of Agriculture Jim Anderton and Heather Mills.
Actually it is safe to say that those two do not and never will have any sort of relationship, although Anderton found the time to attack Mills' jibes about the farming industry being made for climate change or not carbon neutral or something to that effect.
Anderton was keen to make it known that her claims did not have a leg to stand on factually.
Election Spending OK
In a relatively light week in terms of major business before the house, the Appropriation (Continuation of Interim Meaning of Funding for Parliamentary Purposes) Bill passed its final reading.
This means that, paradoxically, parliamentary parties and MPs can continue to legally misspend funds. Confused?
Well Labour are accusing National of having their own bout of confusion about this legislation, saying that while they publicly deride what is now law, privately, they support it.
As is true in such political games, the truth will probably never be known.
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