Labour leader and Prime Minister Helen Clark and Jim Anderton, leader of coalition partner the Alliance, hold up their coalition agreement in 1999. This was the first time coalition partners adopted 'agree to disagree' procedures to manage policy differences. Such procedures lessened the chances of cabinet becoming publicly divided and running the risk of losing the confidence of the House of Representatives. It did not stop parties from experiencing internal conflict – Jim Anderton left the Alliance to form a new party, the Progressives, in 2002.
Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi
Alexander Turnbull Library, Dominion Post Collection (PA-Group-00685)
Reference: EP/1999/3784/28a
by Maarten Holl
Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.