Stuff.co.nz – Gran Fleming
Labour list MP Georgina Beyer says she expects to step down well in advance of the next election as part of the party’s “rejuvenation” process.
Associate Trade Negotiations Minister Jim Sutton announced his retirement yesterday, fuelling speculation more list MPs could be about to exit.
Prime Minister Helen Clark has publicly stated she wants some old hands to “exit with dignity” so Labour’s caucus can be freshened up ahead of the next election.
Ms Beyer, believed to be the world’s first transsexual MP, has previously said she will not contest that election.
Asked today if she was likely to retire well ahead of the 2008 election, she said: “In my view more than likely, but that depends entirely up to how the leader wants that managed”.
“It fits in with the plan I’ve always had regarding my life in politics be it local government or central government. I want to be out of it by 50 and that’s not far off for me.”
Ms Beyer will turn 50 in November next year.
She said she had made no final decision, but expected to reassess her position in the next year, once some outstanding issues were dealt with.
They included achieving clarity on the status of transsexuals in human rights law, which does not include explicit references to transgender people.
Ms Beyer’s Human Rights (Gender Identity) Amendment Bill, which seeks to explicitly ban discrimination against transsexuals, is on Parliament’s order paper.
The Government has been lukewarm on the bill, but Ms Beyer indicated today that if it could be proved to her that transsexuals were already protected by the existing law she would consider withdrawing it.