Field prosecution opens

The Dom Post reports:

Former MP Taito Phillip Field knew it was illegal to accept payments for services and not only was he guilty of corruption, he tried to cover it up, the High Court at Auckland has been told.

Field, the MP for Mangere between 1993 and 2008 and an associate cabinet minister in his last term, has pleaded not guilty to 12 bribery and corruption charges and 23 charges of wilfully attempting to obstruct or pervert the course of justice.

Field’s trial involves seven properties, including his home in Samoa, in which he is accused of having mainly Thai plasterers, painters and tilers work for free in exchange for helping them with immigration problems.

I wonder how many of them also joined the Thai branch of the Labour Party which got established, and how much money they raised for Labour?

Mr Moore said that after media reported allegations against Field, prime minister Helen Clark set up an inquiry. Field publicly said at the time that he would co-operate.

“In reality Mr Field, far from co-operating with the inquiry, actually took deliberate steps to do the very opposite,” Mr Moore said. “Knowing that the police and other authorities would be watching the prime minister’s inquiry very closely, he arranged for false evidence to be placed before the inquiry.”

He got the Thai workers to lie and he created false invoices and receipts, Mr Moore said.

The alleged false invoices and receipts will be interesting.