Labour Candidate for Epsom

David Jacobs
Contact Phone (09) 631 5151
Mobile Phone (021) 631 151

Media Statement
31 October 1999

The race for Epsom turns ugly

Labour candidate for Epsom David Jacobs today deplored the petty and personal squabbling between his National and Act opponents.

“With their personal attacks on each other Richard Worth and Rodney Hide are contributing to the low public esteem of politicians,” said David Jacobs.

“Epsom voters wants to hear about the issues which affect them like the desperate need for public transport and the right of children to attend their local school. They are turned off by the politics of personal abuse.”

David Jacobs decided to speak out about his opponents’ campaign tactics after Richard Worth issued a vitriolic press release (attached) in which he accused Rodney Hide of being “a carpet bagger in Epsom and an opportunist” displaying “ill-concealed pride” plus “bluster and insincere posturing.”

“Of course, having criticized such gutter tactics I now risk being a target myself for their abuse in stereo,” said David Jacobs. “But I think it’s time for these right-wingers to lay off each other and focus on the issues. So I call on Richard Worth to do the right thing and apologize to Rodney Hide.”

“The irony is that in their venomous press releases they also each claim to stand for the values of Epsom. They have missed the point that Epsom voters long for the politics of principle to replace the politics of personal abuse.”

“I am putting before Epsom voters the principles I stand for in politics: the principle of a fair society in which all New Zealanders have a fair go; the principle of a clean, green and prosperous country; and the principle of a creative nation where innovation is encouraged, not stifled.”

“I hope the rude squabbling of the right-wingers is not sufficient to divert voters from the political principles they stand for: greed, power and the privatisation of public services. I hope voters will see through their abusive smokescreen.”

“I will continue to campaign on Epsom issues and on the important choice voters are being asked to make regarding the direction of New Zealand in the 21st Century. I will continue to criticize the right-wingers for what they say and do. But I will not engage in personal abuse towards them.”

“Voters’ choices are based on what candidates say and do in their campaigns. It is their best guide to how a candidate will perform as an MP. Of the three front-runners in Epsom, I am the only candidate who is offering voters a higher standard of politics – the politics of principle, not personality.”

Contact: David Jacobs (09) 631 5151 or (021) 631 151

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