Helen Clark is exhibiting a gross double standard over her bullying of Timberlands employee Kit Richards, Opposition Leader Jenny Shipley said today.

“She hounded him out of a job because he didn’t agree with the Government of the day and acted on his views in his personal time to undermine it.

“But the Leader of the Labour Party found it acceptable for an employee of another Crown agency not merely to disagree with the Government of the day but take on a contract to help remove it.

“The Labour Party’s declaration of election expenses shows it paid Brian Edwards $22,500 in the three months leading up to the election.

“At the time he worked for Radio New Zealand, a Crown agency just like Timberlands.

“Brian Edwards was a key adviser and confidante to Helen Clark, at her elbow on election night, while earning $124,800 in a publicly-paid position.

“I want to know where Helen Clark sees the fairness in that. One employee got hounded out of his job for opposing the Government via an email from his own computer in his own time. Another was paid $22,500 to get a Leader of the Opposition elected as Prime Minister.

“In the House today, Helen Clark said she expected employees of Crown agencies to ‘behave professionally.’

“When is she going to behave professionally herself and tidy up the gross double standard she is applying,” Mrs Shipley said.

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