Mr O’Flynn retracts

Press, 23 July 1980, Page 2

Mr O’Flynn retracts

PA' i , Wellington,- •..?*’ ... The--Labour member off Parliament, Mr F. D. ! O’Flynn, Q.C., told Parlia-l. ment yesterday that he had]: been given wrong informa-! tion about another lawyer,-! Mr J. R. Mills, whom hej had described as..an active! member of the National J Party. i Mr Mills, a former tern-1 porary Judge of the Su- 1 preme Court, stood.down as; l commissioner for the Fitz-1 geraldland inquiry after Mr!; O’Flynn made his statements:’ about him in Parliament lastji week. ' j In a personal statement top Parliament's- yesterday, Mr! O’Flynn expressed regret toil Mr Mills for any distress hep had caused him. “Speaking last Wednesday.; in a debate on a motion] about the- commission the;; Government chose to. set up; to inquire rinto the Marginal;! Lands Board affair instead of extending the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman, as it ; could have done; I made a statement about the person <

I appoint?d : -.commissibner.jMr IJ. R. Mills,,'to which-Ijnow ! wish to -refer,” .Mr O’Flynn ’said. . ■' [, “I said- that he was known jfor a long time as a strong, i active member of the !National Party and also? that ] inquiries from well informed i sources ..had disclosed, so it lis said,-that he was either the chairman or an executive member of the Southi land division of the National Party. I “I went on to urge that if i those statements .were ■wrong, they should be contradicted, above all by the [ commissioner himself. This lhas now been done. i “I accept the denials that Shave been made and that my .informants were wrong. ... I “Offence has been taken jat my repeating in good | faith the incorrect informaition they gave to me.-, I ; therefore wish to express ’my regret to the House - for having done this,” Mr O’Flynn said. “I also express my regret to Mr Mills for any distress this may have caused him,”. . ’ /