Privilege Not Abused -p.m. (Press, 10 August 1978)
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Summary: Privilege Not Abused -p.m. (Press, 10 August 1978)
On 10 August 1978, Prime Minister Robert Muldoon responded to allegations made by Social Credit supporter J. I. Kilbride regarding Miss Marilyn Waring, a National Party member for Raglan. Kilbride claimed that Waring had misused Parliamentary postal privileges to distribute a ten-page bulletin promoting her political activities, as well as an appeal for campaign support, to every National Party member in the new Waipa electorate. He characterised this as an abuse of the postal service reserved for parliamentary correspondence. In his reply, Muldoon defended Waring, stating that the Clerk of the House of Representatives, C. P. Littlejohn, had confirmed that Waring's actions were entirely within the established rules governing parliamentary privileges. The Prime Minister condemned Kilbride's allegations as "totally unwarranted" and suggested they were made without a proper investigation of the facts. He remarked that such unfounded accusations did not reflect well on Kilbride or the Social Credit Party, which had previously claimed to maintain a higher standard of political morality than other parties. Muldoon also pointed out that Kilbride's leader, Mr Beetham, had similarly benefitted from parliamentary privileges, despite having previously made critical comments about them before his election. He remarked that it's common practice for members of Parliament on both sides of the House to utilise their privileges, indicating that Waring's actions were not an exception but rather part of standard parliamentary operations. The exchange highlighted tensions between different political parties and the ongoing scrutiny of how parliamentary privileges are used by elected officials.
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