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John Banks must go

John Banks must go


The National Government has been propped up for the past three years by a criminal MP who got his seat through a dodgy deal with John Key, and it is time for that arrangement to end, the Green Party said today.

In the High Court at Auckland Act MP John Banks was today found guilty of filing a false electorate return.

“John Key’s coalition is reliant on a criminal,” Green Party musterer Gareth Hughes said.

“It is completely unacceptable for John Key to continue to rely on John Bank’s vote in the period running up to his sentencing. If John Banks won’t resign, John Key must rule out working with him.

“Regardless of how the court sentences John Banks he is not fit to be a member of Parliament. And he should never have been gifted the seat of Epsom in the first place.

“John Key gifted John Banks the seat of Epsom, then looked the other way when the evidence started piling up against him. John Banks may be guilty of a criminal offence, but John Key is guilty of wilfully remaining ignorant as the evidence stacked up against him.

“John Key has failed in his duty as Prime Minister to lead. He turned his back on the evidence to maintain his wafer thin grip on power and pass a raft of legislation that is bad for New Zealand. John Key’s actions make a lie of his claims to demand a higher standard of ministerial conduct.

“What kind of Prime Minister refuses to read a police report because it might cast doubt on a member of his Government? That is a massive dereliction of his duty to lead this country.

“John Key refused to sack John Banks and refused to even look at the police report on the case. John Key allowed his politics to get in the way of what was right and he’ll be remembered for that,” Mr Hughes said.

ends

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