Labour official paid to be Yan’s agent

A FORMER Labour Party organiser – who was vetoed for a ministerial job by Helen Clark – was paid $5000 to act as an agent for Chinese millionaire Yong Min Yan.

Yan, also known as Bill Liu, is on trial in the High Court at Auckland accused of passport fraud. Former cabinet minister Shane Jones is under pressure to explain why he overruled officials’ advice and approved Yan’s citizenship in 2008.

Further links between Yan – who was red-flagged by Interpol based on arrest warrants issued in China – and the Labour Party emerged in court yesterday.

Former Manuwera Labour candidate Shane Te Pou, also known as Shane Phillips, told the court that he was paid to fill in Yan’s citizenship application. Mr Te Pou was an election campaign manager for former Maori affairs minister Dover Samuels, who wrote in support of Yan’s citizenship.

In 2000, the prime minister at the time, Helen Clark, vetoed Mr Te Pou’s appointment as an executive assistant to Mr Samuels. She said he was not an appropriate person to work in the parliamentary office, because of allegations in 1997 about his use of a union credit card. Mr Te Pou refused to comment last night.

The court heard that Mr Te Pou met Yan at a Labour Party fundraiser in 2005.

Mr Te Pou told the court that he took Yan on a trip to Hawke’s Bay to investigate exporting wine to China. On the trip they met Labour MP Rick Barker. Last week the court heard that Yan boasted to immigration officials that he had MP friends who would ensure he got

Editorial B4 citizenship.

As internal affairs minister, Mr Barker declared a conflict of interest and passed the decision on Yan’s application to Mr Jones, the associate immigration minister.

Yan’s citizenship was granted and in August 2008 a ceremony was organised for him by Mr Samuels in the Maori Affairs select committee room at Parliament.

Current Labour leader David Shearer has come under pressure to stand Mr Jones down because of his recent calls for government ministers John Banks and Nick Smith to be stood down.

He said he spoke to Mr Jones over the weekend, reviewed the information available and concluded that the process appeared ‘‘considered and proper’’. Mr Jones, a list MP, denied any pecuniary association with Yan and had met him on ‘‘one or two occasions’’.

Mr Jones has refused to answer questions about the affair.

Prime Minister John Key last night branded Mr Shearer ‘‘hypocritical’’, saying he had been ‘‘highly critical’’ of Mr Key’s ministers.

He said Mr Shearer and Mr Jones should answer questions about the case today. ‘‘He talks tough, but in the first situation ... he’s simply taken the guy on his word.’’

In closing arguments yesterday David Jones, QC, for the defence, said allegations that Yan relied on political affiliations to progress his application were not substantiated.

The verdict will be delivered on Thursday by Justice Timothy Brewer.