Protester demands Clark attend motorcade trial

David Lewis. Picture / Fotopress

A lone protester greeted defendants outside the Timaru District Court this morning as day four of the hearing into Prime Minister Helen Clark's motorcade got underway.

Ross Collett, an insurance broker, held a sign saying: "Helen, be honest. Come and face the music."

Five policemen and a civilian driver involved in the Prime Minister's motorcade face charges ranging from careless driving to dangerous driving and following too close, betwen Waimate and Christchurch.

It is alleged the motorcade travelled at up to 172km/h and overtook vehicles in the face of oncoming traffic in order for Helen Clark to reach Wellington in time for the Bledisloe Cup rugby test.

Today the officer in charge of the case, Inspector Dave Cliff of Dunedin, will show video evidence of the defendants explaining how they came to be travelling so fast.

The court was told yesterday that Helen Clark had up to half an hour to spare after she reached Christchurch Airport.

Her press secretary, David Lewis, said he had made the decision to try to make a 4.50pm flight from Christchurch on July 17 last year, after the Prime Minister's flight from Timaru was cancelled.

After making the motorcade trip with Helen Clark, Mr Lewis recalled waiting for about 20 to 30 minutes at the Christchurch Airport Koru Lounge before boarding the flight.

"We had made good progress on the trip," he said.

Mr Lewis told the court that he had been mistaken about the timing of flights available from Christchurch.

He understood flights were available at 4.50pm and 7.40pm, the second being too late for Helen Clark to reach Wellington for the test match. The later flight was, in fact, at 5.40pm.

"We had a decision to make as to whether or not we would be able to make the 4.50pm flight.

"The mayor of Waimate was close by and we asked him for advice - if we left then would we be able to get to Christchurch Airport in time to get that flight?

"He suggested, if the road was clear and if we left right then, there was a chance we could make it."

Mr Lewis said he told the Prime Minister that to make the 4.50pm flight, they would have to leave immediately.

"She simply noted what I said and said 'okay', and made her departures from the people she was talking to at the function quickly and we were in the cars reasonably speedily."

Mr Lewis recalled the motorcade travelling between about 140km/h and 150km/h when the highway was clear.

"My recollection is that the driving, while at times fast, was safe and sort of reasonable in terms of the motorcades I had experienced over the years.

"In New Zealand we haven't had to go at those speeds very often."

It was important that Helen Clark reached all of her engagements, Mr Lewis said.

"A lot has been made of the fact the Prime Minister was travelling to a rugby game. But as far as we are concerned, the rugby game could have been the first engagement and the ceremonies at Waimate could have been the second engagement. They are all equally important."

Inspector David Gaskin, the police officer in charge of the Prime Minister's security at Waimate, said the police presence for the visit was much greater than normal because of an earlier threat made against her.

The person who made the threat had been arrested and there was no risk that justified the motorcade speeding, Mr Gaskin said.

He agreed with defence lawyer Jonathan Eaton that he made a "fundamental error" in giving the police escorting Helen Clark the option of catching the 4.50pm flight.

"If I had said that flight didn't exist, they wouldn't have taken it."

Mr Gaskin said he thought the motorcade would not need to speed to make the flight, but now realised he made a wrong assumption.

In hindsight, he would have done things differently.

"I'm sure at some stage I will be called to account."

Minister of Agriculture Jim Sutton, who was travelling with the Prime Minister on the day, is expected to be called for the defence tomorrow.