DEPUTY LEADER NICOLA WILLIS

Newly elected deputy leader of National, Nicola Willis, says it will be her job to stop the party focusing on itself.

In an exclusive interview with Stuff just hours after she was swept to power alongside leader Christopher Luxon, Willis said the political skills she had learned from years working for John Key and in Parliament could be useful in ‘‘drawing a line’’ under the years of disorder and chaos seen in National since leaving power.

National has had five Opposition leaders in four years, and has seen bitter infighting between MPs result in leaks from the caucus room, and MPs such as Hamish Walker and Andrew Falloon resign over bad behaviour.

‘‘I see my job as supporting him,’’ the Wellington MP said of Luxon.

‘‘I also see my job as helping manage our team and getting the best out of every individual. There are lots of components to that – some of that is about strategy, some of that is about research, some is what we are saying to people, and some of that is about how we behave.’’

Asked directly if that meant she would be Luxon’s ‘‘enforcer’’, Willis expanded on what she meant by ‘‘behaviour’’.

‘‘When I talk about how we behave I’m talking about exactly what Chris [Luxon] talked about in the press conference today – which is that National wants to turn the page. We want to put what has been a rough four years behind us and come together as a united group. That’s the behaviour I’m talking about.

‘‘We’re here to serve New Zealanders and what we need to be focused on is the issues that matter to them, and not on each other.

‘‘I think everyone who is an MP in the National Party wants to be able to go into the community with their head held high and be proud.’’

Willis also made clear that Luxon had asked her to be his deputy and that the caucus had known that they were a joint ticket.

She said she intended to keep the housing portfolio, where she had negotiated a bipartisan deal with Labour on residential zoning.

Willis was one of the key figures who helped Todd Muller execute a caucus coup that installed him as National leader and ousted Simon Bridges, something many MPs still resent.

A National Party source earlier this week warned against Luxon appointing Willis, saying it could drive divisions with those who had backed Bridges.

Asked about any bad blood remaining from that coup, Willis again emphasised that National was trying to draw a line under the past.

She said she had learned from the Muller experience that ‘‘everyone can crack under pressure’’. Muller resigned citing mental health strain just months into his leadership.

Willis worked for Key and former leader Bill English in a variety of roles between 2003 and 2011, and then for Fonterra. She entered Parliament in 2018 on the list after English resigned.

Luxon specifically pointed to her political experience, contrasting it with his business background.

Willis said she learned a lot from Key about politics and the party would be silly not to call on the wisdom of successful leaders from the past.

She said it was crucial that National win back more women voters and being a united team would help with that.