April 22, 2020
Privacy worth fighting for says Peters
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New Zealand First leader Winston Peters says his case against two National Government Ministers and the Ministry for Social Development established important points, even if he did not get the result he was seeking.
The Chief High Court Justice dismissed Mr Peters’s claim because he could not establish Paula Bennett, Anne Tolley or senior officials had been the ones who leaked the fact he had been overpaid superannuation.
Mr Peters says he was pleased Justice Venning found the mistake in the rate he was paid was made by MSD officials and not by him, and that the leak was deliberate and malicious.
He says it was always going to be a tough case to run.
"We know that there was a leak and we believe It was deliberate and we know it was designed to damage someone leading up to the election to the maximum amount they possibly could. It was all strategically placed that way, and as even (political commentator) Matthew Hooton says, does anyone in the National Party seriously believe they don't know who the leaker was," he says.
Mr Peters says privacy in a democracy is an important principle to defend.
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