Minister's daughter fined

Anna Bennett outside the court. Photo / Janna Dixon

Government minister Paula Bennett's daughter has pleaded guilty to drink driving.

Anna Lee Bennett failed a breath test at a police checkpoint in Auckland on September 19.

In the Auckland District Court on Wednesday, the 22-year-old pleaded guilty to driving with 516 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath.

The legal limit for someone aged over 20 is 400mcg.

She was convicted and fined $300 plus $130 court costs and banned from driving for six months.

Her lawyer, Colin Bright, said it was Anna's first time before the court and she "accepts responsibility".

Bright said Bennett was a single mum on the Domestic Purposes Benefit who was weeks away from completing her second year of a Bachelor of Social Practice at Unitec.

Since her arrest, she had moved out of the West Auckland house she shared with her mother so she could walk to Unitec because she was expecting to be disqualified from driving.

Judge David Wilson, QC, gave Anna credit for her "previous good record". Her sentence was cut by a third because of her early guilty plea and further reduced because of her "personal circumstances".

It is the second time she has been in the headlines this year.

In January, the Herald on Sunday revealed Paula Bennett had allowed her daughter's violent gangster boyfriend to live in her home.

Viliami Halaholo was bailed to the Bennetts' West Auckland address before a 2007 trial over a violent attack when Paula Bennett was an Opposition MP.

Halaholo was jailed for wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm and intent to steal by extortion after the 2005 attack in Auckland.

Paula Bennett was forced to apologise to Prime Minister John Key and reveal two previously undisclosed letters she wrote to the Parole Board and a judge in support of Halaholo.

Halaholo, who has assault convictions dating to April 2003 and was in a youth gang at the time of his offending according to police sources, was denied parole a second time in August.

He and Anna Bennett split more than three months ago. They have a young daughter, Tiara-Lee.