PM not commenting on cabinet reshuffle

Prime Minister Helen Clark is keeping any plans for a Cabinet reshuffle to herself and she is also staying mum on whether she thinks David Benson-Pope should stand for Labour again in 2008.

Mr Benson-Pope resigned from Cabinet on Friday after Miss Clark made it clear he faced the sack for misleading the public.

His resignation followed an 11th-hour admission on Thursday that he told Environment Ministry chief executive Hugh Logan he would be unlikely to be "free and frank" with Madeleine Setchell. Ms Setchell was removed as Environment communications manager because she is the partner of National Party chief press secretary Kevin Taylor and earlier Mr Benson-Pope had denied offering any opinion about whether he could work with her.

Mr Benson-Pope's portfolios of Environment and Social Development are being looked after by David Parker and Steve Maharey respectively.

Permanent reallocation of those roles has sparked speculation there will be an extensive Cabinet reshuffle with space being made for MPs like Steve Chadwick, Shane Jones, Maryan Street and Darren Hughes.

However, on TVNZ's Breakfast show today Miss Clark would give nothing away except to note there had been two resignations this Parliamentary term with more likely to follow, which freed up options.

She was also cagey when asked if she would back Mr Benson-Pope standing for Dunedin South again.

"The Labour Party has nominations open in a lot of electorates right now so a lot of people will be thinking about what their next move is – whether they renominate (or) decide they want to do something else," she said.

Miss Clark said Mr Benson-Pope's backing by the local electorate committee was unsurprising as he was hard-working in the area.

"(Standing again is) a matter for him to consider, his electorate committee to consider and the party's selection process to consider."

Miss Clark said the Setchell case was different from earlier controversies Mr Benson-Pope faced because they were about allegations as a teacher decades ago. In this case he had failed to recall relatively recent conversations.

"Clearly that wasn't a stellar performance either by the minister or his staff or frankly for that matter by the Ministry for the Environment."

Miss Clark has been critical of Mr Logan for not telling the State Services Commission about Mr Benson-Pope's comment about working with Ms Setchell when it prepared a report into the case.

She and the SSC had relied on Mr Logan's version of events.

"I came out with the fullest information that I'd been able to gather, which I was led to believe was the full story and so was the State Services Commission and so were cabinet colleagues. That proved not to be the case."

Ms Clark also said with such a sensitive position the ministry did not appear to have proper processes in place.

"What I know is a sensitive position like that in the ministry should have had full supervision and proper processes at the ministry and that didn't happen either."

Mr Logan is preparing a report about his handling of the case for the SSC – deputy commissioner Iain Rennie would not express confidence in him on Friday and was awaiting the report.

Meanwhile, a Herald-DigiPoll survey of 400 people in Auckland City has National on 50.2 percent support and Labour on 38.6 percent. A wider survey two weeks ago put Labour 6.5 points behind National.

The newspaper said while the sample was small it could show Labour was hurt by the Setchell affair.

The polling period included the fourth interest rate rise since March after Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard increased the official cash rate to 8.25 per cent on Thursday.

Miss Clark remained preferred Prime Minister on 45.9 percent with National leader John Key on 44.3 percent.

A spokeswoman for Helen Clark said the only comment on the poll was that it was "not of a nationally representative constituency" while Mr Key said the results were consistent with the trend of National improving.