Palmer attacks Banks’ remarks

Press, 28 July 1989, Page 6

Palmer attacks Banks’ remarks

PA Wellington The Minister of Justice, Mr Palmer, yesterday described as “reprehensible” Mr John Bank?’ revelations about the man convicted of stealing the car of two missing Swedish tourists. ■ Mr Banks (National, Whangarei) used Parliamentary privilege on Wednesday to reveal that David Wayne Tamihere, who has been convicted of taking the car of Sven Urban Hoglin and Heidi Paakonen, had previous convictions for manslaughter and rape. But Mr Palmer attacked Mr Banks’ actions, saying it was obvious he did not believe people were entitled to a fair trial. Mr Palmer said Mr Banks’ sort of statements hindered, not helped, the police in obtaining convictions. He was concerned that Mr Banks had used the protection of privilege in similar circumstances a few times last year and that the Opposition Leader, Mr Bolger, had used it to name people who had their names suppressed by the courts. The legal fraternity has rasied concerns with him in the past over such practices by politicians and the whole question of privilege was being looked at by Parliament’s standing orders committee. The Civil Liberties Council’s president, Mr Nat Dunning, said yesterday that Mr Banks might have breached legislation governing the Wanganui computer centre. Mr Dunning said it was an offence to use, disclose, publish or otherwise disseminate any information sourced from the computer without authorisation to do so. New Zealand’s justice system required and depended on Parliament “staying within the bounds of its responsibility and letting the courts get on with their work,” he said.