As the Act leader officially steps into the deputy prime ministership this weekend, some political onlookers are bracing for fireworks, writes Catherine McGregor in today’s extract from The Bulletin.

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‘Disproportionate’ no more

David Seymour is finally getting a job title that matches the role he often seems to believe he’s already playing. At midday on Saturday, the Act Party leader will be sworn in as deputy prime minister in a ceremony at Government House in Auckland, replacing Winston Peters. The following morning, he’ll host a self-styled “celebration brunch” for party supporters, using the occasion for a speech setting out his “vision, goals and priorities” in the role.

It marks a significant milestone for Act, which has gone from a caucus of one in 2014 to a party of 11 MPs and seats in cabinet. “Now here we are at the centre of government,” he told RNZ’s Anneke Smith last year, adding that Act had a “disproportionate” influence on government policy – a claim the prime minister diplomatically disagreed with. As Seymour takes up the second-highest post in cabinet, the influence he once boasted of as leader of a coalition party now has an even stronger platform.

What kind of deputy PM will Seymour be?

For a role that holds little actual power unless the prime minister is absent, the deputy PM title is generating an unusual level of anxiety. Much of that stems from Seymour’s unfiltered style and fondness for ideological skirmishes, notes the Herald’s Audrey Young (paywalled), who says there hasn’t been this much anticipation about a deputy PM since Winston Peters in 1996. Unlike Peters, who has often performed the role (if not his own party leadership) with discipline, Seymour shows little inclination to self-moderate, says Young. However Seymour tells RNZ’s Craig McCulloch this morning the transition will be largely “business as usual”, adding, “I’ve actually been the acting prime minister several times, and we’re all still here, so don’t worry.”

In Young’s charming (paywalled) profile of Jim Bolger on Wednesday, the former National prime minister – who celebrates his 90th birthday tomorrow – was blunt in his advice: Luxon should tell Seymour to “shut up”, and Seymour should “remind himself that he’s not prime minister”. Bolger’s assessment was clear: “Deputy prime minister should not be a high-profile role and wasn’t in my day and shouldn’t be now. It’s a support role.” But if Seymour’s track record is anything to go by, he has no interest in meekly playing second fiddle.

A quieter power play

While much of the focus has been on the ceremonial handover, Seymour is quietly amassing influence elsewhere. As Henry Cooke wrote in The Spinoff earlier this year, a shift in cabinet protocol now requires ministries to loop in the Ministry of Regulation, which Seymour leads, at the earliest stages of policymaking. Previously, Treasury had oversight of regulatory impact assessments (RIAs), giving it leverage over government policy development. That role now sits with a ministry Seymour controls.

As Cooke observes, the change might look procedural, but it gives Seymour access to the inner workings of nearly every other ministry, essentially placing him in the loop on anything that could involve new regulation. “The transfer of a ‘deputy prime ministership’ – an essentially meaningless role when the prime minister is in the country – pales in comparison with the power Seymour is gaining over the machinery of government.”

Radio silence continues

Despite his ascension, one high-profile habit Seymour won’t be dropping is his long-running boycott of RNZ’s Morning Report, reports Stewart Sowman-Lund in the Sunday Star-Times (paywalled). Seymour has turned down over 20 interview requests from Morning Report in the past year – including during times he was acting PM – and has no plans to re-engage. He claims the show has a “toxic culture” and has treated him with disrespect. “The minister isn’t the first to hold a long-running grudge against a particular media outlet or programme,” wrote Sowman-Lund. “Te Pāti Māori doesn’t speak with the NZ Herald and rarely if ever appears on Newstalk ZB [and] Jacinda Ardern notably pulled the plug on the prime minister’s weekly interview with Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking.”

Still, political commentator Janet Wilson says Seymour “absolutely 100%” should front for Morning Report, describing it as a missed chance to reach centrist voters who might be open to his arguments. “Isn’t this an opportunity for him to step up and show what leadership looks like?”

Related from The Spinoff:

• Lyric Waiwiri-Smith: The highs, lows and WTFs of Winston Peters, deputy prime minister