KEY POINTS:
The Thai tiler at the centre of the Taito Phillip Field affair has been told to leave Samoa and airfares for the tiler, his wife and and son are to be paid for by the MP.
One News reported tonight they had obtained a letter from Samoan immigration officials to Sunan Siriwan, his partner and their son saying the family should leave by Wednesday.
The letter cited four allegations of breaches of Mr Siriwan's temporary visa, but TVNZ said the visas were due to expire around now anyway.
Mr Field's wife Maxine told One News they had paid the $2871 required for the tickets as they been asked to do so by the Samoan Government as the family's sponsor into the country.
Mr Siriwan was recently declined re-entry to New Zealand.
His lawyer, Olinda Woodroffe, said she would be travelling to Samoa to see if she could prevent his departure.
She said Mr Siriwan had recently been interviewed by New Zealand police and the timing of the departure raised an "interesting question" as "the investigation is right at its peak".
Mr Field is on indefinite paid leave from Parliament while police investigate his dealings with Asian overstayers amid allegations he personally gained from providing immigration assistance.
A nine-month investigation by Noel Ingram QC into allegations of conflict of interest were spurred by claims Mr Field agreed to help Mr Siriwan with a visa application in return for the tiler doing work on his houses in Samoa and New Zealand.
Mr Field did not tell ministers he lobbied about the work being done for him by Mr Siriwan while he was an overstayer in New Zealand.
Mr Field maintains his innocence.
- NZPA
