Alliance MP Grant Gillon demands a formal apology, and is taking advise as to whether the Associate Minister of Social Services, Work and Income, Mr McCardle, mis-lead Parliament on Tuesday over the antics of WINZ Chief Executive, Christine Rankin.

Today an anonymous WINZ manager who was present at the conference, confirmed Grant Gillon's allegations that yet more tax-payers money had been wasted on an extravagant Michael-Jackson type performance where Christine Rankin dressed up in a silver suit and danced in front of video images of world leaders like Martin Luther King and Ghandi.

'Not only has the Minister potentially mislead parliament, but the question must be asked, has WINZ CEO Christine Rankin mislead the New Zealand public?'

On National Radio's Morning Report on Wednesday 21st July , Christine Rankin denied the allegations. She said:

'It is absolute nonsense.....what a shame that you would believe that, or that the public of New Zealand would believe that, an!
d I think that that is an indicator of where the level of this debate has been taken to.'

On Tuesday Mr McCardle accused Grant Gillon and the opposition of 'stretching to a remarkable degree, the bounds of credibility around some of the claims it has made.'

He went on to say that Grant Gillon was 'whipping up silly little criticisms.'

'These extravagant antics by the WINZ CEO are yet more evidence of a department that has totally lost direction,' said Grant.

'As recently as Tuesday night a report from the Social Services Select Committee was tabled in Parliament. This report severely criticises the newly re-structured WINZ for failing to adequately train front line staff, the woeful mis-handling of student allowances, and delays in integrating the computer systems.

'None of these expensive gimmicks are doing anything to deliver a vital service to the most vulnerable in our community.

'A private sector mentality has obviously invaded the public service. Following hard on !
the golden handshake scandals, it seems a culture of extrav!
agance is leading to a kind of copy cat version of the 'Tories-in-Tutus' scandals that plagued the British Conservative party before they spectacularly lost the last election in 1997, said Grant Gillon.

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