Peters Winston: General DebateText is incorporated into the Bound VolumePeters Winston: General Debate[Sitting date: 24 June 2015. Volume:706;Page:4717. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First): Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we set out to deceive. Yesterday in this House we heard the Minister in charge of Māori Television stumble over undoubtedly well-rehearsed and closely scripted lines. Then there was some inadvertent honesty after a litany of denials blaming everyone but himself. That honesty lasted just as long as Mr Flavell or his staff realised they had made a big mistake and they cack-handedly sought to falsify the Hansard record.He said yesterday on the issue of his awareness of staff involvement the following—and I quote him—“of which I was aware”. Yesterday’s video of Parliament clearly has him saying that but in last night’s Hansard all of a sudden the word “not” was put before the word “aware” so that in the Hansard last night it reads “of which I was not aware”. Yesterday Mr Flavell uttered the truth before a cover-up that must not be allowed to succeed. Now the word “not”—you would not believe it—is back out of the Hansard. What on earth is going on with the leading institution of this country when it is claimed that the Hansard people put the word “not” in there? Who would do that?When you saw the video or you heard what was said there is no way there could have been a mistake. He tried to change the record but in doing so he more deeply implicated himself because what he denied before the Māori Affairs Committee on 17 June in the afternoon in Parliament then this week in Parliament and again today was caught out by his Hansard record—now corrected—which reads “of which I was aware”. And how can a Minister get by making denial after denial when it was said by the Prime Minister: “I’m a Prime Minister who believes in standards—high standards.” Well these standards are so low you could parachute out of the bottom of a snake and have room to spare. Over and over it goes on.I want to say to the National-led Government and more particularly to the Māori Party and Māori members over there that we will never have equality in this country if substandard performance and second-class standards is the benchmark for Māori politicians. We will never have equality if that is what is accepted by your European colleagues in the National Government. It is inverse racism of the worst sort. The last thing that any Māori wants is this paternalistic treatment that says: “Well he’s a Māori Minister; we don’t expect better.”Well we in New Zealand First do expect better. We have always opposed Whānau Ora. The only party in this Parliament that has opposed Whānau Ora because of its corruption is New Zealand First. But the Minister sought and his staff sought to interfere and break the law and to spike—stop—a debate because he did not want to face New Zealand First. That is enough for the Minister to go but the denials over and over and over again and the circus we saw in the House today on points of order about that Hansard change tell us that he should go. I regret saying that—Tim Macindoe: No you don’t.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I do regret saying that. I know him better than you do. I know him far better than that member over there does but I am sick of those members over there telling me they believe in equality. They are telling me they believe in one law for all but when it comes to standards and performance and accountability they clearly do not. Again I say that that Minister in the interests of Māoridom’s integrity let alone that of this country and of this Parliament should resign.You know Marama Fox got involved within hours of the programme being shut down to try to convince Mihi Forbes that the Māori Party was not involved. Why would she do that?Do not forget that on 22 June 2 days after the shutdown you had the chief executive officer for Māori Television—namely this man Paora Maxwell—saying that content was discussed. The Minister kept denying it. What is this photograph here about? Well this is a photograph of him being taken on to the marae to welcome him as the new chief executive officer of Māori Television. What is fascinating about that is this: when this event happened Te Ururoa Flavell was not the Minister in charge of Māori Television. He did not get that job until 8 months later. So the question is: are the allegations true that Māori Party interference in Māori Television was happening a long way back and that it is happening still? The answer is palpably demonstrably yes. Mr Te Ururoa Flavell should be resigning.