Curran cracks under pressure
Clare Curran says she has resigned as a government minister because she is a human being who could ‘‘no longer endure the relentless pressure I’ve been under’’.
An emotional Curran made a short statement to media outside her electorate office in Dunedin yesterday afternoon.
She called Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Thursday night to resign as broadcasting minister.
Curran’s resignation follows her demotion from Cabinet last month over a second failure to declare a meeting, and a difficult week in Parliament answering questions over her use of a personal email account for Government business.
Curran said she had made mistakes but they were not deliberate or meant to undermine the political system.
‘‘Those mistakes have become greatly amplified, and the pressure on me has become unbearable,’’ Curran said.
‘‘I am, like the rest of you, a human being and I can no longer endure the relentless pressure I’ve been under.’’
She did not take any questions from media.
Kris Faafoi will become minister of broadcasting, communication, and digital media, but will remain outside of Cabinet.
Peeni Henare will become the associate minister for ACC.
‘‘Clare Curran contacted me last night to confirm her wish to resign as a minister and I accepted that resignation,’’ Ardern said.
‘‘Clare has come to the view the issues currently surrounding her are causing an unacceptable distraction for the Government and immense pressure on her personally.
‘‘I agree with her assessment that resigning is the best course of action for the Government and for her.’’
In a statement earlier yesterday, Curran said the pressure seemed unlikely to lift.
‘‘I have come to the conclusion the current heat being placed on me is unlikely to go away.
‘‘This pressure has become intolerable. For the benefit of the government, and my personal wellbeing, I believe that resignation is the best course of action,’’ Curran said.
‘‘I used my Gmail account infrequently for work and it would have been discoverable.’’
Ardern told media yesterday afternoon that Curran had made ‘‘an error of judgment’’.
‘‘There is no doubt the minister made a mistake, she lost her position in Cabinet because of it.
‘‘She’s since made the decision that the scrutiny she was under as a result has stopped her being able to do her job.
‘‘She had high expectations for herself and admitted she wasn’t able to meet them.
‘‘She will continue to be a proud and very staunch representative for Dunedin South,’’ Ardern said.
Curran first came under fire when she failed to declare a December meeting with Radio NZ’s thenhead of news, Carol Hirschfeld.
Hirschfeld resigned over that meeting.
Curran was demoted from Cabinet in August when it emerged she had failed to declare a second meeting in response to a question from the Opposition – this time an evening Beehive meeting with technologist Derek Handley, who was applying for a highly-paid government job.
That meeting was set up using her personal Gmail account, which led to further questions in the House this week – including one from National’s Melissa Lee on Wednesday on whether she had used her Gmail account for any other Government business.
Curran then fumbled her way through a non-response.
‘‘To the best of my recollection, um, ah, ah, I haven’t, um, I haven’t used my, um I’ve answered um OIA, ah, ah, OIA responses and personal, um and parliamentary questions correctly and to the best of my recollection, um, ah, you know, that, that has, that’s what I’ve done,’’ Curran said.
This led to her seeking personal leave from Parliament for Thursday, which she was granted.
Curran is Labour’s MP for Dunedin South and has held the seat since 2008.