﻿Mr SPEAKER: Question No 2, Hon Annette King.
Hon ANNETTE KING (Deputy Leader—Labour)
to the PM: Does he stand by his statement that
“There’s always a risk with third-term Governments
"that they get arrogant. There’s always a risk
"that they veer off into a space they haven’t been,
"and start surprising their supporters”?
Hon BILL ENGLISH (Acting PM): Yes. It was an observation
based on watching the third term of the previous Labour Government.
Hon Annette King: Was pulling the hair of a woman worker
in a cafe arrogant, veering off into a space
where he had not been before, or just totally inappropriate behaviour?
Hon BILL ENGLISH: As the PM has acknowledged,
it was totally inappropriate behaviour, for which he apologised
to the young woman concerned and, I might say, well before
public attention was drawn to the matter.
Hon Annette King: Does he think that in modern NZ
it is OK to describe repeated and unwelcome pulling
of a young woman’s hair as banter, horseplay, joking around;
if not, why has he attempted to minimise his weird behaviour?
Hon BILL ENGLISH: The PM has not attempted to minimise the behaviour;
he has acknowledged the inappropriate nature
of that behaviour and dealt with the issue when it was
drawn to his attention.
Hon Annette King: Was the National Party warned
of his hair-pulling behaviour before his actions
became public; if so, when?
Mr SPEAKER: In as far as there is prime ministerial responsibility,
the Hon Bill English.
Hon BILL ENGLISH: Of course the PM had an indication
about the behaviour, because the young woman raised it with him
and he apologised to her. I might say that the PM has,
through intensive interaction with the public over a long period
as leader of the National Party and as the PM,
observed almost always the highest standards of appropriate behaviour.
Hon Annette King: Was there any communication between
his office or his staff and Rachel Glucina or the cafe owners
following the breaking of this story?
Hon BILL ENGLISH: I have not had the opportunity to establish
whether or not that is the case, so I simply cannot answer that question.
Hon Annette King: Does he stand by his statement that
he “needs to be better at reading the tea leaves”
when making decisions about how he will behave in public; if so,
how often does he use tea leaves for advice?
Hon BILL ENGLISH: Yes, the PM does stand by that statement.
I might say that part of the PM’s disappointment at these events—
Grant Robertson: He did it!
Hon BILL ENGLISH: —and the inappropriateness of his behaviour
is that in almost every other respect his interaction with NZers is positive.
Hon Annette King: What is the difference between his behaviour
and that of Aaron Gilmore’s?
[MEMBERS INTERJECT]
Hon BILL ENGLISH: They are different circumstances
and have both been dealt with appropriately.
Hon Annette King: I seek leave to table a Facebook post
on the National Party’s website—
Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order!
I do not need any further assistance. It is available
to all members if they want to look for it.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Putting aside the numerous Parnell cafe incidents,
how does the Acting PM explain the countless photographs
of Mr Key stroking young girls’ hair, and what psychological condition is that?
Hon BILL ENGLISH: I reject all the imputations of that question.
The PM has a track record that I know Opposition parties resent,
and that is of very positive interaction with the whole range
of the NZ community. In this case he has acknowledged
the inappropriateness of his behaviour and dealt with it
well before it came to public attention
because, in his view, if the young woman felt that way
about the behaviour, then it clearly was not appropriate
and he had to deal with it.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Putting aside the Parnell cafe case,
what about the numerous other cases where he has not apologised at all,
and how does he explain that?
Hon BILL ENGLISH: Almost without exception the interactions
the PM has with the NZ public are not the subject of complaints.
In fact, more than any other PM, he is open to those interactions
and they are positive. If anyone felt that he had acted inappropriately,
they are able to raise that issue and, I think,
as indicated by this incident, the PM will take responsibility
for his behaviour and apologise accordingly.
Hon Annette King: Has the Deputy PM ever advised him
that he undertakes such behaviour in public?
Hon BILL ENGLISH: Very generally, the PM has been able to conduct
a very positive relationship with the broader public
without the benefit of advice from the Deputy PM.
Mr SPEAKER: Question No 3.
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