The Crown's appeal of Christine Rankin's damages case has political fingerprints all over it, National's State Services spokesperson Roger Sowry said today.

"It shows the lengths that Labour is prepared to go to prevent what looks like being a highly embarrassing story for the Government being told.

"Today I received a petition signed by 958 Work and Income New Zealand staff in support of Ms Rankin.

"The petition shows that despite not having the support of her Minister Christine Rankin's staff support the work that she does.

"The Government clearly doesn't want this heard under the Employment Relations Act, their own legislation, because it reflect badly on the Government and its Ministers," Mr Sowry said.

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>