Gerry Brownlee MP
National Party State Services Spokesman

25 July 2007

Benson-Pope admits multiple calls to MFE

National Party State Services spokesman Gerry Brownlee says there were multiple contacts between David Benson-Pope’s office and the head of the Environment Ministry over the Madeleine Setchell sacking.

“David Benson-Pope said yesterday ‘on 28 May my adviser informed me that he had received confirmation of a rumour’. Yet today he told Parliament it was ‘confirmed’ by Hugh Logan on May 29. Which is it?

“And unfortunately for Mr Benson-Pope, the State Services Commission report released on Friday says it was Environment CEO Hugh Logan who ‘informed’ him – although yesterday the Minister told Parliament his adviser confirmed the rumour for him on May 28. Which is it?

“The Minister has said that after the initial response from his office to the Ministry there were ‘two or three’ phone calls between his office and the Ministry for the Environment on May 28 to discuss progress.

“What was said during those ‘two or three’ conversations? Is the Minister telling us that despite ‘two or three’ conversations the discussion never went beyond a simple inquiry as to whether the rumour was true?

“It beggars belief, that having initiated a flurry of phone calls, Mr Benson-Pope’s adviser never discussed the matter with Mr Benson-Pope and never again discussed the matter with Mr Logan – especially in light of the fact that the Minister’s adviser has ‘regular’ contact with Ministry’s CEO.

“David Benson-Pope continues to dance on the head of a pin. Fair minded New Zealanders will work out for themselves who is telling the truth, and frankly the Minister’s sophistry is doing him no favours.”

ENDS

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