Greens reel over lashing on Howard stance

Green Party MPs were left black and blue yesterday after a verbal lashing in Parliament for calling on the Government to cancel a visit by Australian Prime Minister John Howard.

Mr Howard is due to visit New Zealand from Saturday to Monday for regular talks with Prime Minister Helen Clark.

MPs from both sides of the House turned a question on Mr Howard's visit into a chance to bash the Greens, who in turn said their stance was being misrepresented.

Greens foreign affairs spokesman Keith Locke objected to allegations the party intended to disrupt a state luncheon in honour of Mr Howard. It had made no such threat, he said.

Green Party co-leader Jeanette Fitzsimons disputed that she had said Mr Howard was as welcome in New Zealand as Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, after Foreign Affairs Minister Phil Goff quoted her from a newspaper report.

Mr Goff, United Future leader Peter Dunne, Act MPs Richard Prebble and Rodney Hide and New Zealand First MP Dail Jones all hit out at the Greens.

It was unwise to shun or abuse leaders over points of disagreement, Mr Goff said.

"Two sovereign countries will often have different views on specific issues," he said. "To say that John Howard is as welcome here as Saddam Hussein ... is frankly offensive and immature.

"To withdraw an invitation to Mr Howard to visit New Zealand would impede, not improve, discussions of issues and would undermine our ongoing and very important relationship."

Helen Clark said there was a slight chance the visit could be called off if war broke out.

"If the full deployment of Australian troops took precedence we would fully understand that [the visit being called off]."

- NZPA