Barry Soper: Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent on Chlöe Swarbrick getting booted from the House during Palestine speech

Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick will be kicked out of Parliament tomorrow, unless she says sorry for remarks made today.

The Auckland Central MP was sent out of the House, after refusing to apologise for suggesting MPs who don't support sanctioning Israel more - don't have a spine.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper questions what Swarbrick aims to accomplish - and wonders what taking a stance on Palestine will do for the wider conflict.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Barry Soper, senior political correspondents with US Now.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
Barry, Hello, good afternoon.

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Okay, So run us through what's happened in parliamentary Gaza.

Speaker 2 (00:07):
Well, you know, a lot of rhetoric and a lot
of fairly fierce rhetoric in parliament, which is to be
expected because people hold very strong views either way. But
you know, the thing that interests me is that this
question of recognition of Palestine, is that going to stop
the war. Are they going to finally put down the arms?

(00:28):
Hummus and say, look, oh they've recognized us, so that's good.
They can see us a badge of honor if they did.

Speaker 1 (00:33):
Do you No, in fact fact, there's anything, If anything,
it's actually prolonging the war because Humas has now come out,
since this has blown up, has come out and said
we will not lay down arms until we get a state.
So it's actually given.

Speaker 2 (00:43):
I think we're all getting sidetracked. And I see Alen
Clark was at the Gaza border with Mary Robinson, the
former President of Ireland, and I admire Clark for going there.
She wanted to see firsthand just how bad the situation was.
But she had to go at New Zealand for it.
She said, this is not the New Zealand. I know recognition,
she said, coupling, coudling. She called it right back up

(01:07):
to Washington, DC. So she's saying we're playing a wait
and sea game to see Washington and to see how
they responded by recognizing we could upset Donald Trump. And
part of that I guess is could be true. So
the Greens co lead Chloe Swarbreck, she was in the

(01:27):
thick of it in Parliament today during question time she
was firing questions at the Prime Minister. But it was
the Palestinian scarf that she had neatly covering her seat
in the debating chamber that ex David Seymour took offense at.

Speaker 3 (01:42):
Mister spager Joy, your attention to the member who has
just resumed her seat, which is adorned with a Palestinian scarf,
and I invite you to consider what might this House
might look like if everybody who had an interest in
a global conflict started adorning their seats with symbols of
one side or the of a conflict. I think that
would bring the House into disrepute.

Speaker 4 (02:03):
You make a very good point. Actually, I think I've
been willing to accept that if people were wearing something
that did not particularly Oh here we go. Good, Okay,
we'll stay warm, We'll move on.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
Now she's wrapped it around there, so yeah, she took
it off the seat, wrapped it around her shoulders, as
were all the other Green members with Palestinian scarves draping
their shoulders, all in different colors, not just the black
and white today. So that was interesting. But look, after
questions were dealt with, Speaker brownly allowed a debate on

(02:35):
the recognition of Palestine and that was moved by Labour's
toe nade I keep saying toe, I knew it when. Yeah,
exactly after Hanarre and Winston Peters had the essay, as
you're about to hear, Swarbrick was back on her feet
and incurred the wrath of the speaker.

Speaker 5 (02:54):
The warrant Gaza has killed so many and created the
humanitarian crisis which great us every morning we open our
eyes recognition, we believe is a necessary step towards ending
the cycle of violence we are witnessing. What we're seeing
from this government is in activity and sadly walking blissfully

(03:18):
into the sunset of ignorance.

Speaker 6 (03:21):
For the Labor Party's benefit. They had fifteen years to
recognize Palestine's statehood. I had held o'clock this morning while
she was a Prime minister from ninety nine to two
thousand and eight. Did you do that then?

Speaker 2 (03:37):
No?

Speaker 6 (03:38):
And then twenty seventeen to twenty twenty three they had
the second chance and mister Hopkins was there as well
to do that. Then did they do it?

Speaker 2 (03:48):
No?

Speaker 6 (03:48):
Six years?

Speaker 3 (03:49):
No, Missus Speaker.

Speaker 7 (03:50):
I will reiterate my call for the Government to pick
up our Unlawful Occupation of Palestine Sanctions Bill and to
sanction Israel four. It's war crimes. If we find sex
of sixty eight government MPs with a spine, we can
stand on the right side of history.

Speaker 4 (04:08):
That is completely unacceptable. To make that statement withdrawn and
apologize then leave the House for the rest of the week.

Speaker 2 (04:18):
So she's got a week off about what she says. Well,
I've got to say I've heard many more eventsive things
in Parliament, don't.

Speaker 1 (04:26):
Well Brook van Veld and dropped the sea boy the way.

Speaker 2 (04:28):
That's exactly right. But I think you know, Jerry was
at wits end. It was a pretty fierce debate. But
you know, I think she came out of Parliament and
she said, I think he was a bit heavy handed,
and I think he probably was on this occasion. I
meant to call MP spinalers. You're meant to call them
honorable members when you're in the debating chamber, and of
course you don't think that, but you're not meant to

(04:51):
say what you think in that place. So she sort
of incurred the wrath and is now on holiday for
the rest of the week.

Speaker 1 (05:01):
Barry, really quickly, what do you make of the poll?
There's a little update from the Taxpayers Union, isn't that?

Speaker 2 (05:05):
Yeah? And there'll probably be more of this on TV
ANDT tonight because they always follow up these polls. And
it comes as no surprise at all really that, you know,
growing the economy, it got minus three percent, reducing costs
for household minus thirty nine percent, managing national accounts and
to get them back into surplus minus one, creating joels

(05:28):
minus thirty three, and wasteful spending reducing it minus four.

Speaker 1 (05:33):
So this is the government's scorecard according to Rotors.

Speaker 2 (05:35):
Yes, I was going to say that that's everything is
in the negative. That won't come as good news to
the government, but it won't come as any surprise because
they know and we know the economy. Stupid is the
problem here.

Speaker 1 (05:49):
Yeah, Barry, thanks very much, really appreciate it. Barry Soper,
Senior political correspondent.

Speaker 2 (05:53):
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