Media Release

03 October 2001

Burton Must Be Bullet Proof

New Zealand First Leader and Member of Parliament for Tauranga, Rt Hon Winston Peters, today described the Minister of Defence, Hon Mark Burton as bullet proof given he has once again slipped away from the fallout over the most recent of the string of inquiries into affairs for which he holds Ministerial responsibility.

“I have known other MPs to become known as ‘teflon coated’ or ‘ Houdini like‘ because of their uncanny knack of avoiding scrutiny or responsibility for their failings, but Hon Mark Burton has reached a new low that indicates that he must simply be bullet proof “ claimed Mr Peters.

Hon Burton has endured more reviews, inquiries or investigations in his short time as a Minister, than most politicians would attract in a lifetime in politics”, said Mr Peters.

“Hon Burton at various stages during the last twenty months, has faced inquires into the Fire Service for which he was responsible as the then Internal Affairs Minister, numerous investigations surrounding the management and claimed mis-management of the Airways Corporation into its extravagant overseas spending, allegations of wrong doing or leaking of information within New Zealand Post and the Peoples Bank for which he is responsible as the Minister of State Owned Enterprises, and now the Defence allegations of impropriety, all of which have seen this Minister slip away unscathed”,Mr Peters said.

“On another occasion when things were becoming a bit uncomfortable in the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee, and pressure was building on him to answer some tough questions, he simply took off in pursuit of fire engines somewhere deep in his electorate.

I don’t know how he does it, but he certainly wouldn’t survive if the Prime Minister had her understanding of Ministerial accountability updated”, concluded Mr Peters.

Ends

© Scoop Media