Clayton Mitchell New Zealand First MP

Freddie Mercury could have been singing about this blue government, when he recorded ‘Another One Bites The Dust'. Jo Goodhew, from the Rangitata electorate, has thrown in the towel – or thrown her toys out of the cot – after being demoted in the first Cabinet reshuffle of the new Prime Minister

How many MPs can a party lose before an election, and still hold onto the myth that they can offer stable government? The ship of state needs all hands on deck and a strong captain steering the course, but what have we got it? Elected official after elected official eyeing the lifeboats in preparation to jump ship before their leader runs them onto the rocks, like he did the last time he was in command, back in 2002.

We know we're not heading in the right direction on so many issues: housing, immigration, trade, income inequality, added-value exports, transportation, free-to-air sports of national significance, the list goes on. But all we can really hope for between now and the election is they stop focusing on multi-national interests, and start putting the oars in the water for New Zealanders.

As of today, the list of blue desertions is: John Key, Hekia Parata, Mike Sabin, Maurice Williamson, Chester Borrows, Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga, Craig Foss, Murray McCully, Lindsay Tisch, Jono Naylor, and now Jo Goodhew. Who's next? One or two could be explainable, but we've hit double figures. The trickle is becoming a flood. Eleven MPs out of 59 from the 2014 election roster. That's more than 18 per cent.

They can spin a good line about opportunities for fresh blood to come in, but New Zealand is fed up with this blue government, and in 2017 the real choice is black and white.