Greens deny conflict of interest over firm

A taxpayer-funded Green Party pre-Budget brochure promoted a company in which its "Green Futures" superannuation scheme is a shareholder without disclosing the interest.

The brochure on the party's jobs stimulus package "Green New Deal" was paid for by Parliamentary Services and went to about 300,000 homes before the Budget last month.

It included an article about a worker at wind turbine manufacturer Windflow Technology as an example of jobs in a company in "a new green economy".

The party's Green Futures Super Trust holds about 6000 shares in the company out of 12 million shares. The shares are are worth $1.82 each. No mention of its interest was included in the article.

Green Party MP Jeanette Fitzsimons said the Greens' interest in the company was "tiny" and was publicly known. She did not believe it promoted the company or that a disclosure was needed.

"I see no conflict of interest here. Windflow does not sell to the retail market so if it did get a small amount of publicity from GT there is no way it could profit from it. Everything we are doing has been disclosed."

She said the brochure cost about $30,000 and qualified for Parliamentary Services funding because it was about the work of MPs.

In 2006, Green MP Sue Bradford disclosed the trust's shareholding on a press release she made about wind power. At that time, she was the Government's spokeswoman for the Buy Kiwi Made programme.

Ms Fitzsimons said in general MPs were less constrained in where they invested and what they commented on than ministers or government representatives.

"It would be unreasonable to expect us to invest only in coal or nuclear power ... because they're things we're never going to be promoting."

She said the trust was also a very different issue from personal shareholdings in the company. Ms Fitzsimons sold her personal shares in Windflow Technology in 2006 after she was made a government spokesman for energy efficiency in the last Labour government.

By law, MPs are required to disclose their pecuniary interests, including shareholdings.

They must also disclose trusts and super schemes from which they benefit, although they do not have to disclose investments by those trusts.

Parliament's rules also require MPs to disclose specific financial interests before taking part in debating any measures from which they, their immediate family, or trusts or businesses they are involved in will benefit.

Six of the nine Green MPs contribute 8 per cent of their salary to the Green Futures scheme, set up by the party in 1997 so the Greens could ensure it invested in sustainable companies.

It has shares in natural health product company Comvita and organic food company New Zealand Bio-Grains.

THE BROCHURE
* 300,000 copies
* Cost $30,000
* Green Futures Super trust holds 16,000 shares in a wind energy company featured in it