PM protecting staff, Robertson: Bennett
WELLINGTON: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is being accused of protecting the role of her staff and Finance Minister Grant Robertson in Labour’s mishandling of complaints about a former Labour staff member.
National Party deputy leader Paula Bennett has criticised the two reviews Ms Ardern announced yesterday, which are aimed at giving a voice to the complainants and bringing culture change to the Labour Party.
The former staff member, who quit his Parliamentary Service job in the Labour leader’s office last week and maintains his innocence, faced seven formal complaints and was cleared by a Labour Party investigation in July.
Maria Dew QC is now reviewing the substance of the complaints after complainants said the process was unfair and a sexual assault complaint was ignored.
Speaking at her postCabinet press conference yesterday afternoon, Ms Ardern said an independent review, alongside the Dew review, would establish a summary of facts and look at what complaints were received.
A woman has said she directly told the party about a sexual assault complaint, but the party’s investigating panel, including panel chairman Simon Mitchell, has said that is untrue.
Ms Ardern said the independent review would focus on documents rather than interviews to protect complainants from having to engage in both processes, but anyone who wanted to participate or challenge the summary of facts would be able to.
But Ms Bennett, who has named Ms Ardern’s most trusted advisers and Finance Minister Grant Robertson as people who were told about the complaints, accused Ms Ardern of protecting those people.
‘‘It’s not looking at the Beehive at all. It’s not looking at [Ardern’s] senior staff. It’s not looking at the complaints that went to them. It’s not looking at how involved Grant Robertson and others have been.
‘‘We’re told continuously that the alleged perpetrator is very close to [Robertson], has been involved in party activities with him before, so I wonder how much he has known and why he just doesn’t come clean.’’
Asked which review would ask her staff and ministers what they knew, Ms Ardern said she expected ‘‘all those required’’ to participate in the independent review.
She would not say whether her staff or any ministers had told her about a sexual assault claim and she was focused on moving forward.
Ms Bennett said Ms Ardern’s response spoke volumes: ‘‘The fact she wouldn’t answer says a lot.’’
Ms Bennett also criticised Mr Mitchell, whose statement yesterday denying being told about a sexual assault claim followed a weekend of teleconferences between Ms Ardern and Labour’s ruling council about the next steps.
‘‘The prime minister has supposedly taken charge this weekend, and within hours one of her own council members has defied the very process she has put in place,’’ Ms Bennett said.
She called Mr Mitchell’s statement ‘‘victimblaming’’.
‘‘I think it’s dreadful they [the complainants] have to go through this publicly, yet again.’’
Ms Ardern also criticised Mr Mitchell, saying a public statement ‘‘serves noone’’, least of all the complainants. She said Labour would bring in a victims’ advocate to look at the reviews’ findings and work with the party to put systems in place such as prevention, training and victimcentred processes for managing complaints.
Ms Ardern has asked Labour MP Poto Williams, who has worked in the sexual and family violence sector, to work with experts to support culture change in the party. — The New Zealand Herald