Audrey Young: Gazumping Cup bid ends fairytale

Audrey Young. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The political debacle over the Maori Television Service bid for Rugby World Cup coverage rights has soured relations between National and the Maori Party more than anything else in their one-year partnership.

It also threatens to end what has been a fairytale relationship between Maoridom and Prime Minister John Key.

The Maori Party has a grievance over the process National has used to win the argument and that erodes good will far more than the argument itself.

Maori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples yesterday accused the Government of a breach of "etiquette and fair play" in backing a TVNZ bid to boot the Maori bid out of the paddock.

He stopped short of labelling the Government as "insider traders" but said the fact that TVNZ was encouraged to make a new bid knowing how much Maori Television had bid was "grossly unfair".

"I feel very disappointed that they have done this ... I just feel it has not been right."

From the mild-mannered Dr Sharples these were cutting criticisms.

They followed a meeting in the Beehive on Monday night between Mr Key and Dr Sharples to thrash out the issue.

The sense of grievance that Dr Sharples demonstrated yesterday was different from other disagreements the Maori Party has had with National.

In the case of rejecting special Maori seats on the Auckland Council, the Maori Party defended the consultative process, if not the decision. It amounted to a disagreement within Queensberry rules.

Dr Sharples even suggested in response to goading from Labour that the way the Auckland seats disagreement had been handled - with respect - had strengthened the relationship between the Maori Party and National.

Yesterday the mood was different.

Dr Sharples was gutted. The picture he tried to paint to reporters was of a double standard operating and treachery being applied.

Maori had been condemned for using taxpayer money from Te Puni Kokiri to support its bid. But taxpayer funding was to be used freely to outbid Maori Television.

Te Puni Kokiri was challenged by John Key to make its case and it did so to him privately - something TVNZ did not need to do.

Te Puni Kokiri's support of the Maori Television bid was condemned as interference in a commercial process without enough consultation with National. But TVNZ has virtually been ordered by the Beehive to make a bid to gazump Maori Television.

Publicly the Government justifies its action on the basis of wanting 100 per cent coverage. That could have been achieved on a sub-licensing basis with perhaps delayed coverage for TV One. It really wants the mass audience TV One and TV3 can deliver to promote ticket sales.

And it wants greater control over the cup, an event that Broadcasting Minister Jonathan Coleman called the "biggest event in our lifetime".

Maori Television and the aspirations its bid carried have been expendable. The highly unorthodox talk last night from state-owned Maori Television was one of rebellion in the face of Maori aspirations having been trampled - and possibly increasing its bid with the help of wealthy iwi.

Mr Key in Parliament yesterday acknowledged that the bidding process had been "less than perfect". He made much of the fact that money had not yet been paid for TVNZ - nor has it to Maori Television. Both are on a promise.

We are all on a promise of more tensions ahead.