Hours later, as Ardern took to the Beehive theatrette podium for her weekly post-Cabinet press conference, Dr Sharma was back on Facebook. But media tracked him down and the MP stuck to his guns.Īrdern said she hoped to see the issue resolved during the week, but wouldn't commit to any independent investigation into what Dr Sharma was complaining about. The Prime Minister spent her Monday morning media round continuing to dispute the MP's allegations of widespread bullying.īack in his electorate, Dr Sharma had spent the weekend at community events and with constituents. Screenshots and a secret meeting Monday, August 15 He didn't provide evidence to back up what he was saying. Parliamentary Service later said the money had been used in normal practice. The social media post named former Chief Whip Kieran McAnulty as one of those responsible - though the now-minister denies the allegations - and claimed taxpayer money had been misused by another MP. Late on Friday night, as more details emerged about the complaints made about Dr Sharma by staffers, the MP published a lengthy statement on Facebook, making more specific claims of bullying and calling for an independent investigation into his concerns as well as the complaints against him. There has been a push to improve workplace culture in Parliament following a review which found major holes in processes. Parliamentary Service, Chief Labour Whip Duncan Webb and the Prime Minister all mentioned the need to support MPs and their staff. He hadn't "necessarily welcomed" these attempts, she said. Instead, she said a "number of interventions" had been made to try to resolve issues in Dr Sharma's office, but these had "given rise to some issues from Gaurav's perspective". Jacinda Ardern disputed allegations of bullying within the party, saying she had seen "no evidence" of anything framed like that. The next day, the Prime Minister fronted. During that process, hiring for Dr Sharma's office was paused while he received mentoring. Parliamentary Service and the Labour Whips office both responded by saying they had been engaged with Dr Sharma in dealing with issues raised about him by staff members. He revealed later that day that he had taken his complaints to the Prime Minister's Office last year and "nothing has been done". The piece argued that MP-to-MP and party-to-MP bullying was "rampant in Parliament" and that Parliamentary Service - which provides administrative support to MPs and staff - "promoted and facilitated" this by "working behind the scenes" with party Whips, leaders, and the Prime Minister's Office.ĭr Sharma said it was his experience that when an MP raises issues with Parliamentary Service that it "stonewalls the conversation, ghosts the MP and throws them to the Whip's office to be gaslighted and victimised further so that the party can use the information to threaten you about your long-term career prospects". Published on the NZHerald website last Thursday, a column from Dr Gaurav Sharma, first elected to Parliament during Labour's 2020 election landslide victory as the MP for Hamilton West, raised concerns about bullying within Labour. While most political observers last week had their eyes trained on the controversy unfolding within the National Party - newbie Tauranga MP Sam Uffindell admitted violently attacking a student at school two decades ago and faced allegations of terrorising a flatmate - another little-known MP was about to make waves. 'Rampant in Parliament' Thursday, August 11 So how did we get here - and what could happen next? It was later confirmed the Labour caucus would meet on Tuesday to consider expelling him.īut Dr Sharma is promising to not go down without a fight, telling Newhub on Thursday he was prepared to be expelled and he was sticking to his principles. A spokesperson for the Prime Minister on Thursday night said Dr Sharma's latest actions were another "example of releasing and misrepresenting conversations with his colleagues". Labour has rejected his allegations over the past week and Dr Sharma has provided no evidence to substantiate his bullying claims. But there was an opportunity for the Hamilton West MP to return, with a review of his suspension set for December.īut any chance of the backbencher being welcomed back likely went up in flames on Thursday night when he spoke out again by telling Newshub Political Editor Jenna Lynch that the Prime Minister and her office were covering up bullying within Labour. Labour's Dr Gaurav Sharma dropped bombshell after bombshell in an exclusive interview with Newshub on Thursday night, levelling allegations squarely at the Prime Minister and releasing a secret recording he says proves a late-night meeting of MPs this week determined his fate.Īfter drip-feeding claims to the media for days, Dr Sharma was punished by Labour this week, suspended from its caucus effective immediately.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |