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Dalziel a goner!

February 19th, 2004 at 12:13 pm by David Farrar

It is ironic that just last week I was praising Lianne Dalziel for her performance on Immigration.

Now I can only conclude that she is about to resign or be sacked. As a friend of Helen’s of course it will be a Claytons sacking and she will stay as a Cabinet Minister with other portfolios, but I can not see how she can continue with crediblity as NZ’s Immigration Minister.

As Stuff reports, Dalziel has publicly lied twice, and possibly a third time also.

She said on Monday night she did not know how TV3 got the notes from the lawyer to the Sri Lankan girl. And then she said on Wednesday’s Morning Report she had not leaked the notes.

I suspect the public hates even more than an outright lie, an MP who tries to play cute with the truth and effectively say “No I did not leak the paper …. and then find out she did get her Press Secretary to do it for her.”

This is enough for a resignation, but on top of that it is also looking less and less likely that the notes were gained by the girl’s lawyer faxing them to the Prime Minister, but by Immigration staff stealing them from the girl’s room as that was the only copy of them which had the guinea pig on it.

Related posts:

  1. Dalziel sued for $3 million
  2. Dalziel rules out Mayoralty
  3. Dalziel in impressive form
  4. Dalziel promoted
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3 Responses to “Dalziel a goner!”

  1. GPT Says:
    February 19th, 2004 at 12:32 pm

    Dalziel has been implicated in releasing legally privileged documents (covered by the solicitor-client relationship).

    1. Immigration service – as minister of a service that is prepared to breach this confidence she could arguably be required to resign
    2. To perpetuate this breach by allowing (or ordering) the public release of such documents is a resigning issue to start with.
    3. The Law Society will fudge on it but it is probably a breach of rules of professional conduct (even although she does not hold a practicing cert), probably a contempt of Court and definately bad form.

    If she has any sense she will resign now and hope like hell that the contempt complaints are swept away by Helen’s little helpers.

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  2. Berend de Boer Says:
    February 20th, 2004 at 8:28 am

    Lianne is not incompetent, she has capabilities. Her problem has its root in her ethics. Lying isn’t a problem, if it serves a purpose. There is nothing wrong with lying perse.

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  3. Craig Ranapia (Other Pundit) Says:
    February 24th, 2004 at 8:19 am

    David —

    Try praising the Prime Moron. With a little luck there was a causual relationship between your praise of Dalziel and her disgrace.

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