Winston Peters dismisses shared leadership possibilities

Winston Peters has flatly denied the suggestion he could share the Prime Ministership if New Zealand First holds the balance of power after this year's election.

It was revealed on Friday in the latest episode of Radio New Zealand's The 9th Floor series that one of Mr Peters' staff had suggested the idea of sharing the top job with Helen Clark in 1996.

"It might've been loosely floated," Ms Clark said.

"She didn't say that I did that," Mr Peters told The Nation on Saturday.

"Somebody else who was on my tactical team apparently did that. I think it was because in 1932 the then-leader of the second-biggest party in the coalition was in fact the Prime Minister - a man called Forbes.

"[It had] already happened, and I think it was a tactic to get [Labour] in the right mental frame of mind in terms of negotiating."

When asked if now could be the time for a similar arrangement to 1932, Mr Peters said: "Neither myself or anybody else in my organisation and in my caucus is thinking of that sort of talk.

"We are not going into this arrangement to sell the people out on compromises and arrangements that are against national interest."

In March, a Newshub / Reid Research poll found that New Zealand First came in on 7.6 percent - down half a point from the last poll.

Newshub.