No pressure to quit, says Mr O’Brien

Press, 7 September 1976, Page 2

No pressure to quit, says Mr O’Brien

PA Wellington The Labour member of Parliament for Island Bay, Mr J. G. O’Brien, said yesterday that at no time during his absence from Parliament had he been under any pressure to resign. Speaking on his return to Parliament, Mr O’Brien said he understood he had had the full support of the whole of the Labour Party caucus. Mr O’Brien was involved in an incident on June 15

in Christchurch which led to his spending several weeks in hospital and facing two charges of indecent assault on males. After a hearing in the Christchurch Magistrate’s Court, Mr E. S. J. Crutchley, S.M., found that Mr O’Brien had no case to answer. Mr O’Brien said he would spend most of this week reading through a huge file of papers which had accumulated on his desk and catching up on electoral business.

He said he would take his place in Parliament this afternoon but did not know if he could be sworn in as the Speaker (Sir Roy Jack) was out of the country and there was some confusion whether the Deputy Speaker (Mr J. R. Harrison) was permitted to swear in members. Asked how he felt physically, he said he had headaches and his head movements were restricted but otherwise he felt “fine.”