Rt. Hon Winston Peters
Leader NZ First

January 26 2012

Come Clean On Crafar Farms Mr Key

New Zealand First says the government is not telling New Zealanders that China has raised with the New Zealand Government provisions in the New Zealand-China Free Trade Agreement as it relates to the Crafar farms purchase by one of China’s companies.

Rt Hon Winston Peters says that is behind the Prime Minister’s weak kneed apology for leadership on this issue and explains why the Beehive is working on a public relations plan to try to quell opposition to the sale of the sixteen farms.

“We know the Overseas Investment Office made its decision a long time ago and National did not have the guts to announce its approval of the sale before the election.

“China is now demanding that the purchase of the farms come under the Free Trade Agreement that New Zealand First opposed even though I was Foreign Minister when the agreement was signed by Labour and supported by National.

“We warned at the time the FTA was signed that it would come back to bite us where it hurt.

“For some time the National Party has been getting closer and closer to China business interests. There have been huge political donations to National and it now appears to be payback time.

“We have always stated that a fair price should be paid for the farms but they should remain in New Zealand hands,” says Mr Peters.

“Mr Key is talking utter rubbish when he says that the decision now falls to two low ranked National Ministers behind whose coat tails he wishes to hide even though he is Prime Minister.”

“Come clean Mr Key and stop flannelling the country once again.”

ENDS

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