Rt Hon Winston Peters
New Zealand First Leader
4 July 2013

Joyce Spinning Faster than a Blackjack Wheel

New Zealand First leader Rt Hon Winston Peters says Steven Joyce is spinning faster than the blackjack wheels at Sky City with respect to his recent European junket.

Mr Joyce is attempting to dismiss questions about the cost of the trip by drawing attention to the travel expenses of Mr Peters when he was Minister of Foreign Affairs.

“As the Minister of Foreign Affairs travelling extensively on behalf of the country's interests overseas, my office spent less than the former National Minister of Foreign Affairs.

“Steven Joyce is the Minister of Employment. We'd like to see him go down to the local dole queue and explain this prodigality away, and see how those job-seekers react to him wastefully spending over $50,000 of taxpayers’ money,” says Mr Peters.

Mr Joyce has also defended the $56,700 trip by saying that 75 per cent of the bill went on airfares.

“A brief search on the Air New Zealand website shows a return business class airfare from New Zealand to a European capital for $11,000 per person, so how does the Minister account for the rest of the costs?

“New Zealand First will be seeking the answers to the questions and the Minister’s justification for this wasteful spend of taxpayers money,” Mr Peters says.

ENDS

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