Brethren dug dirt on Helen Clark says private detective

Peter Davis

A private detective has admitted Exclusive Brethren members hired him and a colleague to dig dirt on Labour MPs including Prime Minister Helen Clark, as well as her husband Peter Davis.

But in an explosive interview with TV3's John Campbell the detective - Wayne Idour - also said he had reliable information that Labour supporters had hired private eyes to tail National leader Don Brash and to go through his rubbish and that of his finance spokesman John Key.

Miss Clark said this week she had been told by two credible sources the secretive religious sect had sought to have her and Dr Davis followed by private eyes.

She revealed the claim after the Sunday Star-Times and Investigate Magazine reported rumours that Dr Davis was gay.

Miss Clark has attacked the rumours as a smear campaign orchestrated by her political opponents and the Brethren.

Mr Idour tonight confirmed the Brethren had sought to uncover information on any illegal activities committed by Labour.

That included Miss Clark and Dr Davis.

Mr Idour also revealed information they had gathered had played a hand in the scandals surrounding Cabinet Minister David Benson-Pope's conduct as a former high school teacher and colleague David Parker's former business dealings.

Mr Idour said he and his colleague had also collected information on Deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen.


"There was information concerning Mr Benson-Pope, there was information concerning David Parker, there was information concerning Michael Cullen.

"A lot of this information is not yet public. I don't want to go into it, but we do know a lot.

"It relates to the prime minister and some of the information relates to her husband."

Mr Idour said he was into finding facts rather than muckraking and the facts he had been finding had alarmed him.

"I would like to believe we could trust our politicians... I'm just disgusted at what I've been uncovering.

"A lot of information I've been uncovering about the Government is very dishonest.

"And if the public knew, and they have a right to know, my view is... there would be a by-election (sic) tomorrow."

Mr Idour would not give specific examples.

Yesterday he denied he had worked for the Exclusive Brethren, but on reflection today decided to go public.

He said he had been subcontracted by a colleague, who he now understood had been hired by a member of the secretive sect, which has committed itself to ousting Labour.

He said the pair snooped on Labour MPs. The information had then been passed to sect members, who decided on how to reveal it to the media.

Investigate magazine, which has pursued the rumours around Dr Davis in several issues, also broke the story on Mr Parker's troubles with a previous business partner.

Mr Parker was subsequently cleared of wrongdoing.

Mr Idour said he was unaware of any National Party link to the Brethren hiring detectives.

But he said he had good information someone in the Labour Party had hired an investigator to look at Dr Brash and Mr Key for several months.

They had also tailed Brethren members to find out where they went and who they met.

Mr Idour said he had not spoken directly to the detectives, but knew the firm involved.

Another detective had also told him he was approached to do the job and had turned it down.

"This thing has got very dirty."

Miss Clark tonight denied the Labour Party had ever hired a private detective to dig dirt on its opponents.

"It's a complete concoction and fiction by a man who yesterday would not tell the truth about his activities to three media organisations and had been caught out," Miss Clark said.

She also did not believe Labour Party members or supporters would have informally pursued such actions.

"I'd be amazed, surprised. I just don't believe it."

Miss Clark said the Labour MPs mentioned, with the exception of Dr Cullen, had all been targets of Investigate, along with her husband.

"I think it's absolute scumbag politics. The Brethren stand condemned for this activity and frankly if the National Party does not now renounce any support either now or in the future from the Brethren then its credibility goes down the gurgler with them."

Miss Clark said she was not particularly concerned about what information sect members might hold, as the information they had produced so far - namely false rumours about her husband - was so weak.

"There was not a shred of truth in that. If that's the quality of their information then there would be very little to be worried about."


Meanwhile One News aired part of a taped conversation with Brethren member Phil Winn, which appeared to back up Mr Idour's claims.

Asked by a reporter if he was concerned whether attempts to dig up information on Miss Clark would come back to bite the Brethren, Mr Winn said: "Of course I'm concerned what might happen".

Asked if other sect members were aware that detectives were hired, he said: "We're a pretty close bunch - I'm just trying to think this through - there is an awareness of what's going on."

National's deputy leader Gerry Brownlee tonight denied his party had anything to do with the Brethren's actions.

"It's absolutely deplorable. There is no place for this in New Zealand politics," he said.

He said New Zealand politicians lived in small communities where everyone was linked in some way, meaning it was difficult to conceal secrets even without the involvement of private detectives.

Such activities were an invasion into MPs' family lives.

"I cannot condemn this more strongly. This has been a most unsavoury turn in New Zealand politics."

Mr Brownlee said Mr Key had caught someone looking through his rubbish during the election campaign, but the party believed at the time it was probably someone looking for details of National's closely held tax policy.

He was not aware of other incidents.

Earlier today Dr Davis said he too had no idea he had been trailed by anyone.

However the Brethren appear to have dedicated themselves to unseating Labour.

They waged a campaign worth more than $500,000 attacking Labour in the lead-up to last year's election and correspondence with the Chief Electoral Officer, released under the Official Information Act, shows they wanted to spend $1.2 million in support of National.

But they were told they if they did, that would be counted in National's spending.

Since the election Exclusive Brethren members have been frequent visitors to Parliament, watching from the public gallery on most sitting days.

- NZPA