The National Party Caucus knew nuffink about Nick Smith’s problems
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8:39 am, June 2nd, 2021 - 40 comments
Categories: Judith Collins, national, Parliament, same old national, workers' rights -
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Last night the story about Nick Smith’s issues that caused his resignation finally broke, or did it?
Jenna Lynch at Newshub had the scoop. Newshup, particularly Tova O’Brien appears to be the go to news media organisation for internal National leaks.
The article did not refer to the terms of the draft findings of the investigation however. It may be that there is another story waiting to be completed and that the contesting of the terms of the draft report may be the hold up.
There were hints by some in the media that Trevor Mallard was the leaker. As if. Why leak it now rather than during last year’s election campaign?
Richard Harman has a much more plausible explanation. He notes (paywalled) that Judith Collins warned the National caucus early last month that media were about to break a scandal involving one of the party’s MPs. She then told Smith last Friday that the story involved him. Clearly the leaking from within Caucus is continuing and Collins sounded rattled on Morning Report this morning when asked about this.
The anonymous comments by former staffers about Smith reported by Jenna Lynch are really out there. They included these:
- “Smith was notorious for that red mist”
- “One of the most difficult assholes I’ve ever worked for”
- “I have no fond memories of that guy”
- “He was prone to bouts of extreme verbal anger towards other ministers and staff. It was out of the ordinary even then. But we didn’t complain because we were Gen Xers. We should have”
- “Nick’s irrational and verbally abusive behaviour towards his staff was one of Parliament’s worst-kept secrets. Everyone from Ministerial Services, Parliamentary Services, the Prime Minister’s Office and the bullying inquiry knew about it yet Nick’s staff continued to be collateral damage.”
The caucus has claimed that it knew nothing of what was happening. Judith Collins said that she did.
It is hard to reconcile National MPs claims that they knew nothing with some of the former staffers’ comments particularly “[e]veryone from Ministerial Services, Parliamentary Services, the Prime Minister’s Office and the bullying inquiry knew about it yet Nick’s staff continued to be collateral damage”.
This is a further set back for National. When it should be trying to formulate an alternative vision for the country it is yet again engaged in putting out fires. And this again feeds into the mantra that National MPs think they are born to rule.
This story has not concluded yet.
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- Govt’s emissions plan for measly 1% reduction
New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...1 week ago
- Greens stand in solidarity with Whakaata Māori on sad day
The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...1 week ago
- Sanctions regime to create more hardship for families
Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...1 week ago
- Govt gifts renters housing anxiety for Christmas
Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...1 week ago
- Release: National Party urged to support modern slavery legislation
Labour is urging the Prime Minister to walk the talk and support legislation combating modern slavery. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour has lost confidence in the Speaker
The Speaker of the New Zealand Parliament made an unprecedented decision on the government amendment to the Fast Track Approvals Bill last night. ...2 weeks ago
- One year on, still no progress on new ferries
Today’s announcement from the Government on its plan for new ferries throws more uncertainty on the future of the country’s rail network. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Nicola Willis’ smaller ferries will cost more
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- Bill to sanction unlawful occupation of Palestine
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- Release: Labour fully supports greyhound racing ban
The Government has done the right thing in moving to ban greyhound racing. ...2 weeks ago
- Greyhound racing industry ban marks new era for animal welfare
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- Rangatahi voices must be centred in Government’s Relationship and Sexuality Education refresh
In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) in schools. ...2 weeks ago
- Govt introduces archaic anti-worker legislation
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- Winston Peters – Kinleith Mill Speech
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- Internationally-trained doctors jump at chance to boost health workforce
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Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has appointed Sarah Ottrey to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). “At my first APEC Summit in Lima, I experienced firsthand the role that ABAC plays in guaranteeing political leaders hear the voice of business,” Mr Luxon says. “New Zealand’s ABAC representatives are very well respected and ...3 days ago
- New intelligence oversight appointments
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- New housing developments able to progress more quickly
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- Actions to speed up air travel delivering results
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- Ending contracted emergency housing in Rotorua
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- Vocational education and training decisions support return to regions
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- Reducing the environmental impact of synthetic refrigerants
The Government is taking action to better manage synthetic refrigerants and reduce emissions caused by greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds says. “Regulations will be drafted to support a product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants, Ms. Simmonds says. “Synthetic refrigerants are found in a ...3 days ago
- Ngāruawāhia section of Waikato Expressway back to 4 lanes for Christmas
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- Appointments to the ENZ board
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- Government to celebrate Waitangi Day around NZ
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- More gangs added to Gangs Act list
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- GDP data highlights importance of growth
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- Strengthening Free Speech in Universities
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- Launch of Emergency Cellular Priority Service
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- Minister reopens Mangamuka Gorge
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- Funding confirmed for second Ashburton Bridge
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- Government boosts support for avian influenza response
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- Inspector-General of Defence appointed
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- Fire and Emergency New Zealand final levy rates confirmed
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- More AML relief on the way for Kiwi businesses
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- Hawke’s Bay Expressway moving at pace
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- Government seeks partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned-land
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- Wide ranging legislation to make justice system more efficient
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- Diverse skills in community trust appointments
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- Torture redress for survivors of the Lake Alice Unit
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- A busy year in the House
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- Consultation opens on working with engineered stone
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- Greater reporting on Treaty settlement commitments
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- New appointments to the Charities Registration Board
Mr Roger Holmes Miller and Ms Tarita Hutchinson have been appointed to the Charities Registration Board, Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Louise Upston says. “I would like to welcome the new members joining the Charities Registration Board. “The appointment of Ms Hutchinson and Mr Miller will strengthen the Board’s capacity ...5 days ago
- Building consent processing times improve
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- Faster access to support through Innovation Fund
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- New Zealand to assist Vanuatu on earthquake response
New Zealand is providing Vanuatu assistance following yesterday's devastating earthquake, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Vanuatu is a member of our Pacific family and we are supporting it in this time of acute need," Mr Peters says. "Our thoughts are with the people of Vanuatu, and we will be ...5 days ago
- Government takes steps to reduce card fees for Kiwis
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- Review recommends ECE regulation shakeup
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- Offshore Renewable Energy Bill passes first reading
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- Local Government (Water Services) Bill passes first reading
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- Gene Technology Bill passes first reading
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- Vanuatu quake: Warnings as bad weather threat looms for Port Vila
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Nasty National exposed again Collins herself is another nasty piece of work keeping the bad news to when Labour releases a budget that’s not so popular.
So the damage is minimised.
The next poll may see Collins finally dumped to cleanse National of its Nasty image .
" The next poll may see Collins finally dumped to cleanse National of its Nasty image "
They are called the Nasty Natz for a reason,
Luxon is the next Key but with the glow of righteous religion.
I absolutely love the National Party. What fun. Keep it coming. After decades of their arrogance and born to rule mantra, us kiwis are treated to reality politics, National style. All over the front pages and on internet news. Brilliant. They deserve it.
"National MPs think they are born to rule"
Not surprising since they so frequently do – and the social and occupational classes from which they arise always do, in one way or another.
No one should think they are born to rule in the future using the past as their criteria. There is so much wrong with that sort of thinking.
Oh you are so right. So what do you think can be done about that. Next step?
"….should be trying to formulate an alternative vision for the country.." nailed it Mickey however we all know it's not in their DNA.
The current govt's rectifying nationals vision in health, education , housing etc etc. Leopards and spots from the born to rules with refined rhetoric is all that's coming no matter who leads them.
IMO 2020 showed a new generation of voters emerging and engaged in the voting process. Their distrust of the major parties across the globe has merit. National serve up more of the same.
They're really only being consistent – they know nuffink of consequence about most things.
Spot on. Quite the haiku.
Collins spin doesn't cut the mustard.
Collins says she warned colleagues a month ago but only found out about it in the news on Monday yet they knew before the last election.
Dirty politics has come home to roost.
National need to front up Nick Smith needs to front up looks like that everyone in National knew but the Spin Doctors set up a strategy to have everyone singing from the same page.
But Collins duplicity on when she warned everybody doesn't add up.
The media needs to ask some hard questions.
" The media needs to ask some hard questions " which never happens over a period of time to crack the facade.
It's a once over lightly by nationals media mates and then maybe a dead cat or similar tactic.
So all this expense produced no change?
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6019097-Independent-External-Review-Into-Bullying-and.html
Those things are only for executive arse covering. Tick box exercises to say we had policies in place. Gives them a way of firing people whose transgressions become too public.
Doesn't stop the behaviour – might just make it more passive aggressive at best.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/judith-collins-says-she-didn-t-push-nick-smith-resign-over-verbal-altercation-staffer-v1
At the end of clip Collins tries to finger Trevor Mallard. Infers he and Parliamentary Services have something to explain. Her usual trick – changing the narrative and planting the idea that Trev and his PS mates leaked the information?
I see the old chestnut about MPs being both direct managers of staff and unfirable MPs means 'nothing can done' …yeah right.
Yes they can, its easy: repeated pattern of misbehavior means the staff entitlements are slowly removed until 'the beatings stop' ( sarc)
As it happens now Parliamentary Services aids and abets outrageous behavior from some MPs, as they pay out any staff and happily pay for their replacements. Why would Smith modify his behavior where he thinks hes the GOAT.
As they say in the ads… theres more
'Former National candidate Jake Bezzant is no longer a member of the party as serious allegations against him from an ex-girlfriend emerge.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300322828/former-national-candidate-jake-bezzant-leaves-party-as-serious-allegations-emerge
Sounds to me like the factions have some infighting spilling into public as the media leaked the details…now who would benefit from an ally of Paula Bennetts being exposed in this way.
Bennett had her own issues with a young man claiming she had abused him and threatened to sue him but never did. His post remains up online.
That was around Bennetts 'life on the DPB' and as organiser of the Napier Tattoo ( social) club
I mean Judee wouldn't have any idea how to go about getting info to handpicked journos to get rid of a hasbeen colleague. The thought would probably never cross her mind, good christian lady that she is.
It will be fun to see Judith Collins defends who knew what about the sex bullying charges against Jake Bezzant.
They really know how to pick them.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/national-candidate-jake-bezzant-cuts-ties-with-party-following-explosive-claims/D2GCWGXAT47CJH77RSPGNB7U44/
There's an IT Crowd solution for every problem.
Judith Collins and W Oil plotted to get MPs who favoured their ideas. The replacement for Nick looks like a right wing religious member imo. Slow but sure "renewal".The people change but obviously the behaviours don't, as they fit with the superiority.
In the latest case, no real respect for women unless they are in a support role. In this case support for sexual gratification and immoral use of power.
Revenge Porn not applicable to white well off males.
Yet the police are in like a dogs robber if Maori protest over stolen land.
Tricledrown, that guy is appearing in court. Heard it on the news.
It really looks tome like national are trying to pre-empt the report from Parliamentary services here. This all seems carefully staged to take the sting out of the report when it is finally revealed.
Nick Smith is worth a brace of Mallards. Dirty politics is now firmly owned by the left
You claim this but is there any evidence Mallard leaked?
Mind you, even if he did he's done New Zealand a major service. National would prefer to bury bad behaviour; Smith, Bezzant, JLR, Falloon, Boag, Walker, Merv. The list goes on and on and on.
Atrocious behaviour, and worse is the attempted cover-ups.
Are you alledging Mallard slept with someone in an effort to get into a position to manipulate them to into making a previous consensual sexual relationship between them and one of Mallard's political opponents public? /sarc
Truly desperate assertions, imho. Recently revealed 'escapades' of Nick Smith and Jake Bezzant (the ‘scamp‘) show that Boag's historic campaign to "stop the rot" continues to be an abysmal failure. The National party is still hollow, still rotten, and still very dirty.
Ian .Ever since the Exclusive Brethren's involvement with National back in 2004/5 Don Brash's dirty little helpers National have flung mud used Hollow men used Dirty politics to undermine the left.
Now chooks coming home to roost cry babies can't handle the mess completely orchestrated by the likes of hooten Slater William's. Loading their extremist tobacco lobbyists into the National Party they have been found wanting from lines of white powder in Queenstown to bullying and sexual harassment.
The National Pary has no one to blame but it self and its obsessive win at all Cost's groupies.
edit
Ian Dirty politics is now firmly owned by the left.
Wrong word Ian I think you mean – observed by the left.
And consequences follow when it is observed, we all know that. What has happened to the staffer who is not now employed in Parliament?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/444029/person-who-recorded-nick-smith-s-verbal-altercation-no-longer-at-parliament
Collins has previously told media the Parliamentary Service was alerted to the argument by a staff member of another MP who recorded the spat and then made a complaint.
Without some form of defence the recording would likely be illegal, Collins told RNZ.
“Having said that, I’m just giving you my legal advice on it. The second thing is that, of course, I’ve never heard it, don’t know the details and haven’t been advised of all the details.”
Collins said she didn’t know the person who made the recording personally.
“I don’t know the person myself. I probably would if I were to see the person.”
The person no longer works for the National Party or Parliamentary Service, Collins said.
It is not clear when the staffer left Parliament and under what circumstances.
Not according to locals!! They voted N Smith out.
Wrong. very wrong. But I don't expect someone like you to see that.
Having known Mr Smith for a number of years in Nelson
I can report he is one of the most obnoxious people I have ever met.
The Nelson Electorate public seem to love him.
The Nelson mail was his chief cheer leader.
At time the paper seemed to be like a National party handout.
He has gone! About f*&^king time.
[typo in user name fixed]
I have never understood why so many Nelsonians have backed Nick Smith. The reaction from most people I know was to cheer loudly at his departure. I've only been on the receiving end of his bile once and that was more than enough but a family member had to deal with him quite frequently. There were times when it appeared it was all NS could do to not lash out physically. Purple in the face and spitting as he shouted – a truly ugly spectacle.
outofbed and Prickles are right.
The Nelson Mail have always been kind to National and Nick Smith.
A letter I wrote criticising him once resulted in him phoning me up to discuss the matter. I can't remember what it was about, nothing juicy, but he couldn't address the matter with a published reply as he should have done.
He had a very active supportive electorate team which must have been a great boon to him. He had some money and at his start managed to run his electorate from part of his house, and for decades has had a hall attached to his office which is available to city groups at a low rent, or even no rent. Earlier he had a sort of boyish look and grin which seemed to charm people. And he has had a regular column, in the tabloid style now, it is a half page advertising what he has done, who he has seen, and his itinerary so he seemed to be working hard for Nelson people.
And appearance is all in politics with people who have security of concern from the government as retired people are, who in a graph numbered 10,000 in 2018 and are expected to double that by 2048; the growth is with them, other age groups are lower and fairly stable. Another part of the pdf (which won't perform on my computer) says that this older group are about 25% of the population. https://www.nelson.govt.nz/assets/Our-council/Downloads/population-demographics/2017/Ageing-Population-Nelsons-Older-Population-Summary-of-Research-Feb2017-A1602240.pdf
No matter how polite he may have been, that in itself was a sign of bullying.
I don't think too many people will be sad to see him go. In fact most people I have spoken to think he should have gone years ago.
Never found anything to admire in his utterances – to my mind he should never have come.
Here is an observation but apparently Judith Collins knew about Nick Smith's problems even before the election last year and yet her deputy Shane Reti didn't know about it.
Don't those two supposedly leader and deputy leader of National talk to each other????!!!!
Surely keeping secrets even from each other within the National ranks and especially between Collins and Reti shows there are flaws within National???!!!!
But to not communicate even to a fellow National MP shows how devious Judith Collins is prepared to be. She also demeans herself in ranking and rating due to HER lack of communication.
It also shows we cannot trust Collins to be honest with us NZers if be some misfortune she became prime minister of New Zealand.