National MP John Carter is asking the Government not to expel a British man who has invested heavily in a small Northland community.
Immigration New Zealand has ordered Martyn Payne, 62, to leave the country because of a heart condition, six years after he was allowed in to buy a run-down garage near Kerikeri.
Mr Carter says Mr Payne has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars building Kapiro Motors into a thriving concern that employs locals and sells their produce.
He says he is exactly the sort of immigrant New Zealand needs and his heart condition is not life-threatening.
Mr Carter says he has appealed to the Minister of Immigration three times over Mr Payne's case and is hoping for clemency.
