Tamihere debate heats up

By AUDREY YOUNG


MPs clashed in a stormy debate yesterday when Parliament met for the first time since Cabinet minister John Tamihere stood down over a golden handshake that he had vowed not to accept.

Act leader Rodney Hide used Labour's promises to end golden handshakes to taunt Government MPs.

After several days of muted defence, Labour expressed solidarity with Mr Tamihere and put up a fight yesterday, using counter-attack and veiled attack as its weapon.

Acting Prime Minister Michael Cullen accused Act of colluding with the Maori Party against Mr Tamihere, and he suggested that the tax records of many MPs would not stand up to scrutiny.

Mr Tamihere's close caucus colleague, Clayton Cosgrove, delivered a detailed attack on Waipareira Trust officials. He accused them of engaging in a "witchhunt" against Mr Tamihere and he described as "dodgy" the Deloittes report for the trust that disclosed the $195,000 payment to Mr Tamihere.

Wellington QC Douglas White is conducting a ministerial inquiry into the tax status of the payment and other matters, including Mr Tamihere's election expenses return and a bonus payment for which no authority was cited by Deloittes.

Mr Hide quoted from Helen Clark's prime ministerial statement of February 8, 2000: "This Government wants to abandon the culture of golden handshakes negotiated in secrecy and to abandon the culture of paying people for doing nothing."

He also produced election literature produced by Labour in Opposition 15 days before the 1999 election. It was headed "A Decade of Shame" and cited seven golden handshakes as "reasons why National must go".


Mr Hide said he and the country had "warmed" to Mr Tamihere "as a politician who would set new standards, along with Helen Clark".

But Mr Tamihere had "gone around the back and started hassling for his golden handshake".

National Party leader Don Brash accused Helen Clark of applying a different standard to Maori ministers than she did to Lianne Dalziel, the Immigration Minister sacked for lying about a leaked document.

The Prime Minister had not accepted Ms Dalziel's misleading the public but had accepted that Mr Tamihere had misled the public when he said he would not take a golden handshake.

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters appeared to display some sympathy for Mr Tamihere, formerly an arch-enemy. He said it was a "very sad day for John Tamihere and for the Labour Party, and I believe it is for the Maori people in particular".

"I'd like to have the people on this side of the House also have the same keen interest when people who are not brown commit these sorts of sins," he said.

Mr Tamihere has leave from Parliament for the week and did not attend the House or caucus.

Outside the House, Dr Cullen refused to be drawn on the political judgment of Mr Tamihere until after the inquiry.

"My friend John, I hope, will be cleared but if he is not, that's the way it comes out. But we are going to have an inquiry done properly first."

Most of Labour's Maori MPs put up a show of solidarity for Mr Tamihere.

Dover Samuels said Mr Tamihere was a respected and honourable colleague. "We want him back in the Parliament. New Zealand wants him back in the Parliament. Maoridom wants him back in the Parliament and we are here to support him."