KEY POINTS:
Green Party co-leader Russel Norman got a pasting in Parliament yesterday about half an hour after being sworn in as an MP.
He bravely decided to take on Transport Minister Annette King over the plight of people who used buses and trains.
"When will ministers of this Government get out of their Crown cars and catch the bus to work, as I did this morning, and realise the public transport system is groaning and bursting at the seams," he asked at question time.
Ms King told him she had a bus ticket and did catch the bus to work.
"There are a large number of my colleagues who actually walk to work," she said.
"Let's be straight about this - there are MPs who travel here in VIP cars, who drive their own cars, and who catch taxis, and who ride a bike.
Dr Norman then received a lecture about how many millions the Government had put into public transport since it came to power - funding that was frozen under the previous National Government.
"I believe we should work together on this rather than whipping up a storm for political purposes," Ms King said.
- NZPA
