Rt Hon Winston Peters

New Zealand First Leader
27 February 2013

Court Decision Does Not Give A Mandate For Asset Sales

New Zealand First says today’s Supreme Court decision over water rights does not give the Government a mandate to sell off our power companies and other state-owned assets.

Rt Hon Winston Peters says every survey conducted on asset sales showed a huge majority of New Zealanders were opposed.

“For the Government to claim anything approaching a mandate from the court-decision is blatantly false when so many people are opposed to selling off the country’s silver.

“And if the Government attempts to claim the court decision as a victory then it can only be described as a pyrrhic victory – that is one that comes at a devastating cost.”

Mr Peters says it is sad that this issue has assumed racial connotations of ownership when clearly the assets and water already belong equally to all New Zealanders.

“However, the Maori Party should have walked away a long time ago from its cosy coalition arrangement over this issue. If they wish to have a political future then that is exactly what they should do today,” says Mr Peters.

ENDS

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"Unlawful, Unjustified And Unreasonable": Report Into Urewera Raids Finds Police Acted Unlawfully

Independent Police Conduct Authority Chair Judge Sir David Carruthers said today that the decision by the then Commissioner of Police to undertake the operation in Ruatoki Valley and elsewhere on 15 October 2007 was reasonable and justified.

“However, the road blocks established by Police at Ruatoki and Taneatua were unlawful, unjustified and unreasonable... Police had no legal basis for stopping and searching vehicles or photographing drivers or passengers,” he said...

The report also showed that the detention of the occupants at five properties examined by the Authority was unlawful and unreasonable. More>>