Marion Hobbs should publicly detail her achievements as Broadcasting minister and let New Zealanders judge her ministerial performance, said ACT broadcasting spokesman Penny Webster.
When asked at parliamentary question time what she had done towards introducing local quota to television, Marion Hobbs claimed to have lost her answer.
“Clearly Marion Hobbs has confirmed by her lack of an answer what everyone in New Zealand already suspects: she has done nothing. Instead she is relying entirely on officials to formulate Labours broadcasting policy.
“After six months as the Minister of Broadcasting, Marion Hobbs still does not understand the basics of her position. She has continually passed the buck for her own incompetence onto officials who have been unable to reply.
“It was not until April 11 that Ms Hobbs made the timid step of announcing an airy fairy review into the broad policy objectives of a review that is to follow.
“It would appear that Ms Hobbs has discovered that local content quota is not the easy fix solution she believed it was.
“Under Ms Hobbs guidance, television advertising times are up, digital television has been scrapped and Maori and Pacific Island interests in broadcasting have not been advanced at all.
“Helen Clark has recognised Ms Hobbs’ woeful performance and has given her another ministerial assistant in an attempt to inject competence into the ministerial office.
“I believe Marion Hobbs should come clean with New Zealanders and state clearly what she has done to protect the taxpayers $1.2 billion broadcasting asset or resign from her ministerial position,” said Penny Webster
ENDS

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