Tapsell again under fire

Press, 16 June 1988, Page 3

Tapsell again under fire

Political reporter The member of Parliament for Ashburton, Mrs Jenny Shipley, yesterday renewed the Opposition attack on the comments of the Minister of Police, Mr Tapsell, over female victims of violence or sexual abuse. She said that the Minis-tS ter’s comments last week were contrary to the aims of his own department. Opposition women members were particularly concerned that as Minister of Police he oversaw training programmes aimed to increase police sensitivity when dealing with women victims. “Yet Mr Tapsell as Min-: ister appears to hold extreme views, which we believe run contrary to ft

that objective," said Mrs Shipley. Mr Tapsell attracted controversy last week with his comments on women. Among his remarks was that in the last few years women had taken to wearing slacks with flies in the strange belief that it presented equality. "All it has shown is that ! more and more women have accepted that those who need to wear flies are in some way superior.” In Parliament yesterday Mrs Shipley asked Mr Tapseil to explain this remark. Mr Tapseil said he had made the remark but that it was taken out of context. Nothing he had said diminished the police’s capacity to perform their duties or their training programmes. i-