TVNZ’s Sunday on Field
August 27th, 2006 at 10:40 pm by David FarrarTiming is often crucial in politics, and for Labour the fact the Field issue is still “alive” at tthe same time as their illegal pledge card, which they are seeking to retrospectively legislate, is highly problematic.
Each individual makes the Goveernment look tolerant of corruption and/or self-seeking. Battling both at the same time just makes the perception even worse. I suspect Labour may have to soon decide to concede on one issue, so it can improve its chances on the other. And given the choice between paying back $800,000 or letting Field go, I think I know which choice it will be.
That is made easier by tonight’s Sunday programme on Field. On it Field asserted again he had been cleared, vindicated and exonerated. This is nonsense of course and back in July I documented 44 instances in the Ingram Report which were criticial of Field.
His former electorate agent has said:
* Field (one of Parliament’s wealthier MPs) often took money from people who came to see him for assistance
* No receipts were ever given out for this money
* Field once tried to hide a $100 bill that he had just received from a elderly constituent
* she has no doubt that the e-mail instructing a staffer to hand half their salary over to the MPs wife was authorised by Field
* Field once instructed the date of birth on a Samoan birth certificate to be altered
A former Labour Party officer also said that many of Field’s own constituents couldn’t get in to see him, as he was so busy with immigration matters for people outside his electorate.
Also A Thai immigrant said that she had worked on and renovated no less than three houses for Field.
Finally Sunday also highlighted that his evidence to the Ingram Inquiry about whether he told Siriwan that he had work for him to do in Samoa was contradicted by what he said in a TV interview last September about having him “working on our project”.
The truth will only come out with a proper inquiry with powers to obtain documents and have witnesses testify.
Related posts:
- More Field allegations
- More from Field depositions
- More quotes in support of Field
- 59% say Field should go
August 28th, 2006 at 2:20 am
Fields comments on Sunday wreaked of the same criminal sleaze we have come to expect from the present Govt.
Even after being shown footage of himself contradicting his later testimony,he still advocated that he couldn’t remember the interview, so it didn’t happen.
Vote:I personally don’t see the actions of Ingram in this as being totally impartial, If at any stage of his investigation he believed his was a position that would or could not achieve clarity on the issues, Integrity dictates he should have handed it back to the Govt and stepped aside, but he continued spending nearly $500K of tax payers money to come up with his findings, which would not be out of place on a hook in any long drop toilet in rural NZ.
August 28th, 2006 at 6:15 am
As a centre left voter, I am absolutely appalled by the Government’s continued stonewalling on this issue and on the pledge card. I sent an e-mail to Helen Clark saying that the Government’s actions have caused them to lose my vote in the next election.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 7:42 am
She set up an inquiry the was set up to fail without any proper powers to get to the bottom of things. She should have appointed Ingram and a one man commission of inquiry with all the powers that has. She was hoping for a once over lightly thing and wasted half a million of tax payers money. She did not want answers she wanted a white-wash. It has not worked thanks to the efforts of the media who have finally woken up to the fact Clark has been manipulating them.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 8:33 am
Thrash – only by people doing what you do, will they act on Field.
From a purely partisan point of view I should hope they do not push Field out – the more they defend him as merely helping his constituents and making some minor bad judgements the better it is.
But I do want him gone. I honestly beleive most MPs from all parties are essentialy decent people. And they don’t deserve to have Field lumped in with them.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 8:56 am
It is inconceivable that the Labour Party executive did not know of some of the allegations against Field, or his pattern of behaviour, well before they were made public. Somebody as sleazy as Field does not just suddenly decide to use his constituents as a cash-cow: what’s more important is just how the Labour Party got away with not holding him to account for the last decade.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 9:01 am
No doubt she will bail if things get to hot, but there have been murmurings of possible posts to other agencies post Beehive for Helen Clark?
Vote:I can’t believe a person that handles themselves in the manner as Helen Clark has thinks she will have any involvement offshore representing this country, this has nothing to do with her being ex Labour, this has more to do with her being “extortionate” and not the type of representation this country needs or deserves.
August 28th, 2006 at 11:22 am
Im with culma as regards Ingram Right from the outset it was obvious the TORs were stacked against him being able to conduct a full investigation He should have gone to the PM and said Either change the TORs or Im not going to do it.Its unacceptable that he continued. Its like a tradesman running up a bill when he knows from the outset he cant fix the problem and then saying so after the event.Yet another example of the ethical conduct of the legal profession not.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 11:51 am
gd – it is fairly simple, doesn’t matter if you are in Parliament or business.
Vote:In business if you want to achieve your goals you surround yourself with like minded people, admittedly you do it so your interests are protected by those you place in control positions.
In Govt you do the same thing but in Helen Clark’s case it is to cover ones ass.
I repeat the only constructive thing to come out of the Ingram report is that he took so long delivering nothing that he has bought Helen Clark 12 months grace to try and sugar coat a large pile of crap, this is the only true fact to come out of his efforts!
August 28th, 2006 at 10:24 pm
Yeah culman, but look how constructive it was for Ingram. This snout-in-the-trough, puppet-on-a-glove individual has got 500 g’s of our hard earned money! This whole matter has green flys buzzing all over it.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 10:27 pm
Yeah culman, but look how constructive it was for Ingram. This snout-in-the-trough, puppet-on-a-glove individual has got 500 g’s of our hard earned money! This whole matter has green flys buzzing all over it.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 10:53 pm
In fact culma, I’ll wager you a bet that with the fullness of time, it will be revealed that this matter has been a set-up by Labour and that Ingram knowing and willing, complied with it and, is complicit in it.
Vote:August 28th, 2006 at 11:03 pm
..Cheeses! Did I say that?? That’ll teach me not to preview my posts!
Vote:August 29th, 2006 at 12:04 am
All the ranting about Field, corrupt though he is, hasn’t made stuff all difference to National in the polls.
So how much longer will the public have to put up with brash’s lacklustre leadership.
Vote:August 29th, 2006 at 9:30 am
“This is Christchurch” – National is now nearly 5 points ahead of Labour in the UMR poll out Sunday, a poll which usually has a small statistical bias towards Labour (in contrast to the TVNZ poll which has a small statistical bias towards National which also shows National well ahead).
Vote:August 29th, 2006 at 11:03 am
Does anyone (DPF?) have current local polling like rightkiwi? The PM may be reacting to the Socialists polling hence the shift re Field and the donor letter and no talk about retor legislation from Cullen in the past week or so.Is middle NZ turning against her government?
Vote: