Maori Party co-leader Pita Sharples says Hone Harawira should have held his tongue over the Maori affairs select committee inquiry on the tobacco industry.
In a regular newspaper column this week, the Taitokerau MP says he's disappointed at how tame the draft report is. He said it's failed to focus on addressing the impact of smoking on Maori.
Dr Sharples told Waatea News that his colleague should not have broken the rules against speaking about select committee reports before they are presented to Parliament.
Mr Harawira is currently in Canada talking about treaties with First Nations peoples.
He says the 400 delegates from 11 nations at the sixth annual national Treaties gathering in Saskatchewan have been keen to learn about arrangements between the Crown and Maori in New Zealand.
Mr Harawira told Waatea News that he paid his own way to the conference, rather than accepting an alternative invitation to attend an international parliamentary forum.
