ACT Party candidate John Banks is a redneck and it's an outrage that the Maori Party is prepared to work with him, Mana Party leader Hone Harawira says.
Mr Harawira is upset about comments Mr Banks, a police minister in the previous National government, made on TV3's The Nation programme at the weekend.
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He quoted Mr Banks in a press statement on Tuesday: "If we continue the bankrupt response of just paying young Polynesian, young Maori men in South Auckland, the dole to sit in front of TV, smoke marijuana, watch pornography and plan more drug offending, more burglaries, then we are going to have them coming through our windows if we live in Epsom or anywhere else in greater Auckland."
Mr Harawira says the Maori Party, which signed a support agreement with the National/ACT government after the 2008 election, still wanted to sit at the same table.
"It's a sad day when the Maori Party sacrifices their people's needs just to get into government with a redneck like John Banks and his ACT buddies," Mr Harawira said.
The Maori Party is keeping its options open but it's expected to again support National in the next parliament.
NZN