Scott Lynda: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Scott Lynda: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:611;Page:8198] 
12.  
Dr LYNDA SCOTT (NZ National—Kaikoura) 
 to the  
Deputy Prime Minister 
: Does he stand by his statement regarding the mayor of Marlborough that: “If the Marlborough Regional (sic) Council had talked properly in the first place to the iwi with interests if they had not had a racist as a mayor … if there had been proper talking to at the local authority level in Marlborough it is very doubtful this issue would ever have arisen in the way that it has.”; if so why does he believe that Mr Harrison is a racist? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN (Deputy Prime Minister) 
: 
 Yes in very large part with one exception. Clearly the current mayor was not mayor at the time the original applications were made. 
Dr Lynda Scott 
: In the light of the fact that Mr Harrison was not a member of the council at the time eight South Island iwi laid claim to the Marlborough Sounds seabed and foreshore why is he blaming and naming a person who was not even involved at the time; is it not the case that if someone disagrees with this Government on Maori issues that person is simply labelled a racist? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: No though Mr Harrison was a member of the resource consents committee deciding marine farm applications. I certainly think that the mayor in stating that those iwi who won the Court of Appeal case were Maori bully boys was going well beyond the grounds of reasonable public discourse. 
Dr Lynda Scott 
: In the light of his false misleading and defamatory remarks regarding the Marlborough mayor Mr Tom Harrison will he now apologise to Mr Harrison; if not why not? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: I said the mayor was not mayor at the time the original applications were made but he has made a range of extraordinary comments. For example he says Parliament is dominated by feminists homosexuals politically correct zombies and separatists. 
Gerry Brownlee 
: That’s on your side! 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Even if that is meant to be a summary of the Labour Party we are under half the House. 
Dr Lynda Scott 
: I seek leave to table a letter from the mayor Tom Harrison to the Speaker of the House of Representatives talking about the grossly misleading statements made in the House of Representatives by the Deputy Prime Minister. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that letter. Is there any objection? There is none. 
Ron Mark 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Just so I do not get myself in trouble in future can I take it that as the Deputy Prime Minister thinks that a man who describes people as Maori bully boys is a racist and given the rhetoric that he levelled at Tau Henare Rana Waitai and Tuku Morgan I can call all the Labour members racists legally and legitimately? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member knows that is not a point of order. 
Dr Lynda Scott 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I just seek clarification. Did we have an objection to table this document? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No there was no objection. I said there was none. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House. 
Peter Brown 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I probably should know the answer to this but I seek your advice. Does Mr Harrison have any recourse to have his viewpoint heard by this House if so what can be done? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member should read the Standing Orders and he will see that there is a course of action he can follow. 
Dr Muriel Newman 
: Is the Deputy Prime Minister prepared to repeat outside Parliament his allegations that the mayor of Marlborough is a racist; if not will he do the decent thing retract his statement and apologise to Mr Harrison right now? 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: As I said anybody who can refer to the leaders of the iwi who won the case in the Court of Appeal as Maori bully boys I think has a rather strange view of life. 
Dr Muriel Newman 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. The Minister did not address the question at all. I ask you to ask him to do that. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I thought the Minister did address the question. I thought the implication was that he was not going to withdraw. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. With respect in short he was asked whether if he believed what he said he was prepared to say those same words outside Parliament. That is the question we all heard him being asked. He did not answer it. He sought to evade the question by reference to a comment he had already made which did not have any bearing on the question and had not been raised by the questioner. He should be asked now to answer the question. It was a simple and plain question: “Have you got the courage to say outside Parliament what you say inside it?”. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: I intend to follow the example frequently demonstrated by that particular member in this kind of case. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No. 
Rt Hon Winston Peters 
: No Mr Speaker you’re not getting away with that. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Please be seated. I am not satisfied with that answer. I want the Minister to address the question. 
Hon Dr MICHAEL CULLEN 
: Which meant no.