3. Dr the Hon LOCKWOOD SMITH (National—Rodney) Link to this
to the Minister of Immigration
Does he stand by his statement to the House on Tuesday, 12 September 2006 that he has reviewed the immigration matters covered in the Ingram report?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE (Minister of Immigration) Link to this
Yes. A number of immigration matters were covered in the Ingram inquiry report, which I have read on a number of occasions.
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith Link to this
When reviewing the immigration matters covered in the Ingram report, what information did the Minister find had been provided to the Ingram inquiry by the Hon Phil Goff and Ross Robertson MP regarding the involvement of Taito Phillip Field with Thai national Mr Sunan Siriwan in Samoa?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
I have not turned my attention in particular to the question of what evidence was provided by those members. I am aware, however, that the members briefly visited Mr Field’s house in Samoa but did not discuss immigration matters.
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith Link to this
In reviewing the immigration matters covered in the Ingram report, what steps has the Minister taken to ascertain why the Hon Phil Goff did not volunteer information to the Ingram inquiry regarding Taito Phillip Field’s involvement with Mr Siriwan, given that in March 2005 Mr Goff reportedly spoke to both Mr Siriwan and Mr Keith Williams at Mr Field’s house in Samoa, while Mr Siriwan and Mr Williams were screening the floor, and discussed with them the work that they were doing to level the floor in preparation for tiling?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
What information the member did or did not provide to the Ingram inquiry is not the responsibility of the Minister of Immigration.
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith Link to this
Can the Minister confirm that Taito Phillip Field denied that there was any arrangement for Mr Siriwan to work on his house in Samoa, as detailed in paragraph 77 of the Ingram report, when Mr Robertson saw Mr Siriwan and Mr Williams screening the floor at Mr Field’s house in Samoa, and Mr Goff spoke to both men about the detail of the work they were doing, yet both Mr Goff and Mr Robertson failed to provide this material evidence to Dr Ingram?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
I am sure that Mr Ingram has correctly recorded in paragraph 77 what he was told by Mr Field, but the assertions that the member is making about conversations that other members of this House may have had in Mr Field’s abode do not square with my recollection of those members’ own statements.
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith Link to this
In reviewing the immigration matters covered in the Ingram report, can the Minister confirm that Noel Ingram QC could not establish that Taito Phillip Field knew that Mr Siriwan was working on his house prior to his crucial meeting with Associate Minister Damien O’Connor on 17 May 2005, but that if Mr Ross Robertson had provided evidence that he saw Mr Siriwan screening the floor at Taito Phillip Field’s house in mid-March, and Mr Goff had provided evidence that he spoke to Mr Siriwan while he was doing that screening, the findings of the Ingram report might have been different?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
As the member knows, there are ongoing matters surrounding those issues that are currently the subject of investigation by the New Zealand Police. That is the proper process, and all members of this House will be very interested in their conclusions.
Dr the Hon Lockwood Smith Link to this
When reviewing the immigration matters in the Ingram report, did the Minister investigate why his senior Cabinet colleague the Hon Phil Goff failed to tell either him or the Ingram inquiry that he had met Keith Williams while Mr Williams was working on Taito Phillip Field’s house in Samoa, and knew his name, yet failed to come forward with that information when Keith Williams was named as one of the key figures in the instigation of the Ingram inquiry?
Hon DAVID CUNLIFFE Link to this
I think it has already been established that the Minister of Immigration is not responsible for the individual representations of members of Parliament to the Ingram inquiry. However, I know the member in question to be a man of honour and integrity.