Foreign Minister Winston Peters. Photo: VNP / Phil Smith
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has apologised for an attack he levelled at the Green Party in Parliament more than four months ago.
It comes after Green whip Ricardo Menendez March last week questioned in Parliament why he was still waiting for a resolution to the party's complaint lodged at the time.
On April 2, Peters used his General Debate speech to tear strips off the Greens, labelling the opposition party "deluded" and "woke". As he came to the end of his tirade, he turned his sights on Te Pāti Māori MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi who had been interjecting.
"Listen to that, shouting out down there," Peters said. "The number of frauds committed by the Green Party in the last election knows no bounds."
The Green Party sent a letter the following day to Speaker Gerry Brownlee to formally complain about "a potential breach of privilege amounting to a contempt".
As Parliament resumed on Tuesday afternoon, Peters stood and asked to make a personal statement so he could "withdraw and apologise" for his allegation of fraud.
"That remark was in the heat of a noisy heckling period and I misread my notes," Peters said.
"Everyone in the House would understand that it was clearly not the Green Party being referenced."
After Menendez March's complaint about the delay in resolution last week, Brownlee said he would "take particular responsibility" for ensuring the matter was given "due action".
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