Opposition members called for Stuart Nash to be divested of all his ministerial portfolios during an hour-long urgent debate in Parliament following his resignation as the minister of police on Wednesday.
Nash resigned after he spoke to media about a conversation he had with Police Commissioner Andrew Coster when he was the minister for tourism, which breached Cabinet protocol.
Chris Bishop (National) told the House that ministers must not involve themselves in judicial decision-making. It would be “inappropriate, wrong and unjust” for ministers to get involved in the administration of justice, which must remain neutral and apolitical.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson, who spoke next, said the Cabinet Manual restrained ministers from involving themselves in prosecution processes. It was appropriate, therefore, that Nash had tendered his resignation as the minister of police, which was accepted by the Prime Minister.
Robertson said the Police Act was abundantly clear that the police commissioner was independent of any minister of the Crown. He said the prime minister had made it clear that removing Nash from the police portfolio was proportionate to Nash’s error of judgement.
Robertson closed his remarks by stressing the need to uphold the independence of the police and the judiciary.
Up next was ACT Party leader David Seymour who observed that the independence of the police was a tradition followed in New Zealand. This is because “the State has the power to take you away and lock you up.” So, the individual should at least know that they have the right to a trial and that “whether you end up on trial is not influenced by political considerations.”
Seymour warned politicians not to blur the lines that separated police powers from citizens’ rights. He reminded the members that NZ had a constabulary with immense powers and that the police must never advance the purposes of one political party or the other.
National’s Mark Mitchell said Nash had overreached himself while trying to show that the Labour Government was tough on crime,when it was not. “Offenders caught offending on a Friday night are let off the next day,” Mitchell pointed out.
Nash was the third police minister in 12 months, which explained his desperation “to beat his chest,” Mitchell noted.
The Opposition members demanded the removal of Nash from the Cabinet.
The House resumed normal business after the urgent debate concluded.