New Zealand First leader Winston Peters "wouldn't suit" the Speaker of the House job in Parliament, a former Speaker has said.
It comes after Politik.co.nz reported the National Party had already offered Peters the role. Former National leader and prime minister Sir John Key had floated the idea on RNZ's Checkpoint last month.
The job is traditionally given to a candidate who can offer both sides equal treatment.
Sir David Carter, former National Party MP and Speaker of the House, told Breakfast this morning: "The job of Speaker is to be completely apolitical, to be there to make sure Parliament functions.
"In fact, it's probably the most important position in New Zealand's democracy once Parliament gets underway."
Sir David said "it's speculation that he's been offered it" – but if he has, "it just wouldn't suit Winston Peters".
He said the job wouldn't fit Peters' personality.
"He's been in the cut and thrust of politics for 40 years.
"Can anybody really imagine him stepping out of New Zealand First?" Sir David asked.
"If he's been offered that job and he's turned it down, it doesn't surprise me."
But Peters was "certainly" a good foreign affairs minister, Sir David said.
Peters occupied that role twice, from 2005 to 2008 and from 2017 to 2020.
"He'll have his eye on something," Sir David said.
National seem to be waiting for the special votes to come in, he added, so they can see how dependent they are on NZ First before giving out "the baubles of power".
Sir David said National's Gerry Brownlee would be an "excellent" Speaker.
When asked yesterday, Christopher Luxon wouldn't be drawn on the issue.
"Again, I'm not going to comment on that, because I'm not ruling things in and out based on these conversations.
"What I'm saying to you is that there's a lot of people with their reckons and they could be very, very wrong."
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