Key will apologise to Slater but not Billingsley or Vance

Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, November 25th, 2014 - 21 comments
Categories: david parker, john key, labour, national - Tags: , ,

On the weekend John Key apologised to Cameron Slater for breaching his privacy by releasing a private email. That Slater would even seek an apology is incredible given what he gets up to. Publishing private emails is something Slater does all the time. Just check out Matt Blomfield’s troubles with Slater if you want an example.

Stuff reported:

The prime minister has apologised to Whale Oil blogger Cameron Slater over the release of an email that forced Justice Minister Judith Collins’ resignation.

The discovery comes as John Key awaits an inquiry report into an alleged smear campaign against the boss of the Serious Fraud Office. An email from Slater, obtained and released by Key, implicated Collins in the smear against her own official, saying she had been “gunning” for SFO director Adam Feeley.

Collins resigned, insisting she would clear her name. Key called an inquiry. Slater countered by lodging a privacy complaint against the prime minister for disclosing a personal email.

The email was supplied by Odgers to someone in Key’s office. As she was the recipient of the email she must have been entitled to hand it out unless Slater marked it as being confidential.

The results of the investigation into Judith Collins is due out shortly. It sounds like it will say that Slater and Odgers are a couple of big noters and Collins will be exonerated.

But Key should learn to say sorry more often. He did offer at one stage to apologise to Tania Billingsley, the victim in the Malaysian Diplomat incident, but then said that he would not.  He refused to apologise to reporter Andrea Vance whose privacy was breached when her emails sent to Peter Dunne were sent by Parliamentary Services to the inquiry trying to find out who leaked a confidential report into the Government Security Communications Bureau.

Key’s preferences are clear. He will apologise to someone who writes an email detailing an attack on a senior public service figure but refuse to apologise to someone let down by the legal system or a reporter whose privacy has been breached.

The speed of finalising this case is impressive. I hope that the Government ensures that Labour’s request for investigation into aspects of dirty politics is progressed just as quickly.

21 comments on “Key will apologise to Slater but not Billingsley or Vance ”

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  1. RedLogix 1
    25 November 2014 at 8:29 am

    Because he has to apologise to Slater?

    And that by forcing Key into making it public Slater is in fact playing a very clever game?

  2. Weepus beard 2
    25 November 2014 at 8:34 am

    The family of Smith’s victims will be waiting a long time for any apology for the failure of government systems and the complainant in the Sutton case will be waiting a long time too.

  3. Lanthanide 3
    25 November 2014 at 8:50 am

    Did Bennet ever apologise for leaking beneficiary details in Parliament?

    • BassGuy 3.1
      25 November 2014 at 10:17 am

      Here’s a NZ Herald story which reports that she refused to.

    • emergency mike 3.2
      25 November 2014 at 11:14 am

      I recall her saying she would do the same thing again.

      • weka 3.2.1
        25 November 2014 at 11:41 am

        yes, even after the Privacy Commissioner found she had breached their privacy.

        The extent to which this govt is shifting NZ culture in regards to privacy and ethics is scarey.

    • A Voter 3.3
      15 December 2014 at 1:10 pm

      These people never apologize because their spin doctors have already set the delay to cover their arses so that no space is given for anything they say to actually be remembered
      Honestly can you ever remember any politicians apology actually last long enough in your memory that you can recall it
      But I bet you can remember Key and co arrogant tyrades without too much trouble

  4. Tracey 4
    25 November 2014 at 8:54 am

    Does Key not like apologising to females?

    • adam 4.1
      25 November 2014 at 9:20 am

      It would appear that way. He has an odd relationship with women, if I was a neo-freudian – I’d be saying he had mummy issues.

      • Tracey 4.1.1
        25 November 2014 at 9:30 am

        My partner made a comment last night when she heard Key say, about rennie, that he had made a “calculated” decision. She suggested that emotionally he seems only able to express in jokes or financial calculations. Low or no emotional intelligence.

        • Murray Rawshark 4.1.1.1
          25 November 2014 at 8:08 pm

          I don’t think he understands anything apart from money. Despite his stupid jokes, he doesn’t understand humour very well. He seems to have no understanding of responsibility or ethics. I actually think part of his brain never developed past the age of 12.

        • adam 4.1.1.2
          25 November 2014 at 9:29 pm

          In some ways, his expression and manner is nothing more than pure propaganda, played out by a consummate professional. But, on another level, he does show signs he is on the psychopathy spectrum.

          Especially, that charm and his obvious intelligence – I have not in all the time he has been in politics seen him show empathy. Not real empathy, he can mimic it – but I’ve never seen empathy. If someone has a some video or anything which shows that, I’d like to be proven wrong.

          There you go all you arduous right wingers – prove the PM has empathy .

  5. sabine 5
    25 November 2014 at 8:57 am

    might he apologize now because there is a shit storm to come and oily one will not be pleasant company?

    dear leader just buried what was left of j.collins public career. Essentially she is toast, and a burned slice at that.

    could we speculate that slater is mossad?

    • Murray Rawshark 5.1
      25 November 2014 at 8:10 pm

      Nope. He’s too stupid to be Mossad. I wouldn’t be surprised if he were a paid Hasbara agent. All they have to do is repeat Zionist garbage.

  6. cogito 6
    25 November 2014 at 9:25 am

    An apology from a liar is worthless.

  7. seeker 7
    25 November 2014 at 12:14 pm

    To be fair to the wee man (key) he did he did spell it out (unusually for him) and utter the never to be forgotten words, “he only made apologies if there was a serious reason to do so.”

    http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/250320/pm-accused-of-breaking-word

  8. A Voter 8
    15 December 2014 at 12:31 pm

    Key doesnt deserve to be PM of this country He has no Judicial qualifications no real relationship with what this country is
    Hes another corporate fly by nighter using the world and its resources for his own gain
    He has ruined the integrity of this nation ,sold us out to every crap monkey whos got a dollar
    Then he involves us in a war that has nothing to do with us because even the muslims in this country dont want a bar of it they dont want to be targets
    Key really thinks hes somebody hes a fucking nobody with alot of money
    Warren Buffet got alot of money but he tells the truth about what matters
    Yes Key is one of those YUPPY pricks whos been able to fuck the world over for himself and hes got people are thinking hes the man
    He is aninternational corporate plant infesting and taking over the indigenous values of this country fought for by people who would never be as low as him and would probably shoot him if they were still alive and able
    He is the very thing Ike Eisenhower warned us about when he left the US presidency back in the late 50’s and we are still run by the shit that has followed Key being the latest of the Thatcher Regan Muldoon Howard Shipley line of right wing ripoff merchants
    When is Key goin to get it we dont need his bullshit destroying our nation
    Hes a fucking tyrant sucking the life out of the country

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