Mallard Trevor: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
Mallard Trevor: Estimates Debate — In Committee 
[Volume:648;Page:17654] 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD (Minister for the Environment) 
: 
 If there is one person who should be apologising for the Mapua clean-up it is the former member for Tasman Nick Smith. He is the person who put inordinate pressure on the local council to get it moving. He is the person who put inordinate pressure on it to set up a scheme with conditions. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: The Minister is never responsible. Who’s the Minister? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: There was no Minister responsible for the Tasman District Council making its application for a resource consent. But there was a lot of pressure from the local member Nick Smith for that to happen and he should stand up— 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: Where’s that in the report? 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: It is not in the report; it is a matter of fact. When it became clear that the council could not meet the conditions and that the whole scheme that the member had helped to design was falling apart that member said: “Oh we can’t do it this way. Please take it over Ministry for the Environment.” He ran crying to the Ministry for the Environment and asked it to take over the existing consent that he had pressured the Tasman District Council into obtaining. 
Sue Moroney 
: He stuffed up. 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: Well “stuffed up” is a very nice expression for it. I would say it was the height of a word beginning with “h”. Hearing him complain about it now— 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: Tell the truth for a change. 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: I raise a point of order Mr Chairperson. I object to that. The member made an unparliamentary remark and I ask him to withdraw and apologise. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Dr Smith would you please withdraw and apologise. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: The words I said to the Minister were “Tell the truth for a change.” because everything he has said to date is a fabrication and is untrue. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Clem Simich) 
: I think that is playing with words although that may well be what you said. I object to the words too so would you withdraw and apologise. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: I withdraw and apologise. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Clem Simich) 
: Thank you. 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: If anyone is responsible for people in Mapua being sick it is that member Nick Smith. It does not matter how much he denies it it does not matter how often he denies going to the then Minister for the Environment and saying that the Government should not give all the money that it was proposing to give for the clean-up and that it should give only half of it; that is what Nick Smith said. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: Not true. 
Hon TREVOR MALLARD 
: Oh he says that is not true. That is now on the record and it will be the subject of a breach of privilege. That member has clearly misled the House in an interjection because we have already had a statement in this House from a very honourable member that that was the case. Nick Smith approached Marian Hobbs asked her to halve the amount that the taxpayer was putting in and suggested that the district council should be required to put in the balance. That is what Nick Smith did. I think he might have spent far too much time too close to that clean-up. There is certainly some sign of an effect on his memory of the whole sad procedure. When this story is fully told it will be another nail in the coffin of Nick Smith. Maryan Street will be cleaning him up.