July 25, 2018
National disgrace in Hawea sale
Acting Prime Minister says the previous National Government failed to protect the interests of New Zealanders in the sale of a South Island high country farm to an American television star.
A lawyer for Matt Lauer says the crown will have to pay millions in compensation if it wants an easement through the Hunter Valley Station beside Lake Hawea, which the former NBC host bought last year for $13 million.
Mr Peters says the lease should not have been transferred without securing the right of public access to Hawea Conservation Park.
He says Mr Lauer has done nothing wrong and the fault lies with the Overseas Investment Office and the consenting ministers.
"The people who were acting for the government and the people of New Zealand simply didn't do their job and that is why we are having this argument. It's no use retrospectively trying to fix things up. You either fix it up before the title is transferred or it can't be fixed up," Mr Peters says.
He says National allowed foreign buyers to price New Zealanders out of the market and in the case of American billionaire Peter Thiel it gave fast track citizenship so he didn't have to run his purchases past the Overseas Investment Office.
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