Labour cautious about Carter's fate

JOHN SELKIRK

CHRIS CARTER: "I just want to see Phil Goff gone."

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Rebel MP Chris Carter could escape expulsion from the Labour Party and may only be suspended as party bosses tread warily over how to discipline him for public attacks on leader Phil Goff.

Mr Carter will get a chance to defend himself to Labour Party leadership on Saturday and will be told in the next few days which rules he is accused of breaking.

The Te Atatu MP was expelled from Labour's caucus last week after sending an anonymous letter to the media, saying the party couldn't win the next election with Phil Goff as leader and he should be replaced.

Since then senior Labour MPs have questioned Mr Carter's state of mind and said he was suffering from stress.

Labour's national council will meet on Saturday to decide whether to expel him from the party.

Party president Andrew Little said the party was required to observe the principles of natural justice when deciding on Mr Carter's future.

That meant the Labour Party's national council must gather all the information, give Mr Carter a chance to explain, consider the gravity of the claim against him, whether the claim was proven and what sanctions were available.

It was not clear what Mr Carter was being accused of yet.

"We're in the process of doing that at the moment - formulating what the charges are, so to speak," Mr Little said.

Mr Carter would be told in the next day, or so, which of the party's rules he was accused of breaking.

"Obviously there's a fair few things just coming out of Thursday's events.

"It is quite a process, it's not a question of what particular sanction at this point, it's really a question of ensuring that the process is correct."

It was possible the process would not be concluded at the council's meeting on Saturday if there was not time for the whole process to be worked through, Mr Little said.

Mr Carter was invited to the meeting. It was up to him whether he attended.

He was also able to send a representative or make a written submission.

Party insiders said the cautious approach was driven by concerns over a possible legal challenge but also by the Te Atatu MP's health and state of mind.

Mr Little had spoken to the electorate committee in Te Atatu, chaired by Mr Carter's partner Peter Kaiser, and had met Mr Carter's representatives at a separate meeting. Discussions were "constructive" but he had to be alert to the possibility of a legal challenge if the right process was not followed, though legal action had not been threatened.

However, Mr Carter's actions, including an anonymous attempt to undermine Mr Goff and public calls for him to be rolled, were "at the extreme end" of behaviour warranting disciplinary action. The council had options, "the worst of which is expulsion".

The electorate committee had passed a resolution but Mr Little had not been present. He would be told what it said later this week.

"The meeting was very supportive of Chris as you can imagine; they are obviously concerned about events."

Mr Kaiser would not comment yesterday. He had previously suggested he would stand aside as chairman of the electorate committee if Mr Carter was ousted.

Two MPs said yesterday that the party could stop short of expulsion if he showed genuine remorse and was up-front about his health.

Mr Goff confirmed that, while there were options for the party in dealing with Mr Carter, "it's not an option that he return to the Labour caucus ... He's out of caucus ... we're moving on, the sideshow is over".

Meanwhile, Mr Little has confirmed that Labour opposes the Government's plan to allow workers to swap their fourth week of annual leave for cash. Mr Carter had claimed Mr Goff, in an unguarded moment, had bucked the caucus and union position and essentially supported Prime Minister John Key's position.

Speaking on TV3's The Nation, Mr Little said there was no question that "when Labour is returned to government next year the minimum annual leave entitlement will be four weeks".

Mr Goff has also said the policy is unchanged, but stressed there were more serious issues in the Government's industrial relations proposals, in particular the extension of the 90-day probation period to all workplaces, and changes to personal grievance laws.

Mr Little also said it had "become evident" in the past few days that long-serving MP George Hawkins could be challenged for the Manurewa nomination and that could come from a member of the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union that Mr Little heads – another of Mr Carter's claims.

- with NZPA