The Prime Minister is rubbishing calls for an independent inquiry into illegal Government monitoring of Kim Dotcom.
A report by the Inspector General of Intelligence and Security Paul Neazor found the Government Communications Security Bureau is to blame for the embarrassing blunder.
Opposition parties and Dotcom are both calling for further investigation, but John Key claims that is unnecessary.
He says the Government knows what went wrong and how to ensure it doesn’t happen again.
“You can have all the systems in the world, but if human error comes in and someone fails at the most basic level, sometimes it’s hard to protect against that.
“But we’ll put in place other measures to make sure that’s picked up in the future.”
Mr Key says he is not concerned about a police complaint laid by the Green Party about the illegal surveillance.
Earlier today Labour leader David Shearer wrote to Mr Key, asking for an independent inquiry into the GCSB’s illegal spying.
The GCSB didn't know internet tycoon Kim Dotcom was a permanent resident when it spied on him from December 16 to January 20, the day he was arrested on allegations of copyright piracy.
The agency is forbidden by law to spy on citizens or residents.
"This isn't just about whether a couple of people screwed up at the lowest levels of the GCSB," Mr Shearer said on Friday.
"It's about many serious issues, including how a number of key agencies like the Intelligence Co-ordination Group which reports directly to the prime minister, were either unaware of the issue or deliberately kept it from Mr Key."
Mr Key says another inquiry isn't needed.
"We know what went wrong, we know what we have to do to fix it," he said.
Mr Shearer says he shouldn't sweep it under the carpet.
"It goes to the heart of our national security, New Zealanders' right to privacy and our international reputation for open and honest government."
Mr Key was told on September 17 about the GCSB's spying and ordered an investigation by the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, Paul Neazor.
His report was released on Thursday.
It concluded the police and the GCSB were confused about Dotcom's status and didn't consider the implications of a 2009 immigration law change.
Greens lay police complaint
The Green Party laid an official complaint with police over the Government Security and Communications Bureau's illegal spying on Dotcom this morning.
In a letter to police commissioner Peter Marshall, co-leader Russel Norman says the GCSB, Prime Minister John Key and the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Paul Neazor have acknowledged illegal activity took place.
"The Neazor Report clearly concludes that the GCSB had no authority under the GCSB Act to intercept the communications of Mr Dotcom and Bram van der Kolk," says Dr Norman.
"Both the Neazor Report and the Prime Minister’s public statements have repeatedly labelled the GCSB’s actions illegal.
"The GCSB appears to have breached s216(B) of the Crimes Act, which bans interception of private communications – that is the same law that John Key claimed Bradley Ambrose had breached in the so-called ‘teapot tapes’ affair."
During last year's election campaign, Mr Ambrose inadvertently recorded a conversation between Mr Key and ACT Party Epsom candidate John Banks at a central Auckland cafe.
At the staged event, to which media were invited, Mr Key offered his support to Mr Banks as the preferred candidate for the Epsom electorate.
Mr Key laid a complaint with police, saying the recording of the private conversation was illegal.
An investigation was held but police decided not to prosecute Mr Ambrose, although they called his actions "clearly unlawful".
Several media organisations, including TV3, were investigated by police following Mr Key's complaint.
The recording was never officially released, but appeared on the internet in January.
NZ First leader Winston Peters is hinting for an investigation into the ordeal, taking to twitter this morning.
“The PM's ignorance on a raft of vital matters relating to the Dotcom case is screaming out for investigation,” he says.
The tweet comes after Mr Peters’ speech yesterday during a snap debate at Parliament when he called Mr Key the “spray and walk away” Prime Minister.
“If any other minister had been this incompetent, the Prime Minister would have fired him. We are saying: Prime Minister, fire yourself.
“This is going to leave us as the laughing stock on the international stage,” he said.
3 News/RadioLIVE