Barry Soper: Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent on Chlöe Swarbrick getting booted out of the House

There was drama in Parliament today after Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick doubled down and refused to apologise for comments made yesterday.

She was kicked out of the House for again not apologising for saying Government MPs with a spine should support sanctioning Israel more over Gaza.

She was 'named', which means her pay will be docked.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says everyone's talking about Chlöe Swarbrick's conduct, which is what she wanted.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Barriso for Senior Political Correspondence with us now hate barring afternoon. Okay,
so the house the circus that was the house today,
Well it.

Speaker 2 (00:06):
Was a bit of a circus, wasn't it. And the
main clown on the circus was Chloe Swarbrick herself. She
played it like a fiddle. I mean it played right
into her hands. Everybody's talking about Chloe Swarbrick refusing to apologize.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
That makes her the ring master, doesn't it?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
Well maybe the ring master or the clown. I would
prefer to you see it as So this is how
it all unfolded in Parliament fairly predictably, I would have thought,
although the intervention from Winston Peters wasn't expected. Here they are.

Speaker 3 (00:38):
I invite Chloe Swrawbrick to withdraw and apologize for an
offensive comment made in the House yesterday.

Speaker 2 (00:45):
I won't be doing that, mister Speaker.

Speaker 3 (00:47):
Then the member will leave the house who were refusing
to leave the house. I therefore name Chloe Swwbrick. Question
is that the Chloe Swarbrick be named? The eyes are
sixty eight fifty four of the motion is the creed
people will leave the house. The point of order the

(01:09):
right Honorable Winston Peters, the Speaker.

Speaker 4 (01:11):
I've been in this house when a pro minist accused
the oppition of being or getting some guts for a
serious accusation, nothing happened, and then worse, I heard the
C word being accepted as a language of commused in
this house. My personal view is that I don't agree
with the thing that Chloe Swarbig said at all. But
this is a robose house where people have a right

(01:33):
to express their views as passionate as they may, within
certain rules. But I do not think that eviction was warranted.
Well let me just respond to that. What standard does
the house want to set for itself? My job is
to make sure that this house is a house i've
representatives but deals respectfully with each other.

Speaker 2 (01:53):
Yeah, well, the house in recent years here has gone
from bad to worse. I mean, you know, people wearing
sneakers into their house, jeans, T shirts, hats, no ties.
I think the Business Committee has to meet and they
have to understand that this House should be respected more

(02:16):
than it has been under these circumstances. So it was
interesting when I read the oral questions that were set
down for today. Chloe Swarbrick had the fourth question on
the order paper, and I thought, well, maybe she's going
to do the right thing to keep order in Parliament,
stand up and apologize. Why would she have the question there? Well, anyway, basically,

(02:39):
needless to say, she didn't get to ask the question
because she was out of the house and basically she's
gone for the rest of the week. Asking her question
was her sidekick Mulama Davidson, who didn't get much satisfaction
from the place.

Speaker 1 (02:54):
Does he agree that Benjamin Netta know who's lost the
plot quote?

Speaker 3 (02:59):
And if so, when will he sanction Israel?

Speaker 5 (03:03):
Well, again, those were comments that I made about my
personal observations of Israel attacking Gaza City overnight, which was utterly,
utterly unacceptable. Is what the global community has called for
for a long time. New Zealand has called for for
a long time with its partners to say, Israel, you
need to be listening to the global community, and that
has not been happening.

Speaker 2 (03:23):
And indeed, hither this is what he said before he
went into the house.

Speaker 5 (03:26):
I think what's happening in Gaza is utterly, utterly appalling.
I think Nettiyahu has gone way too far. I think
he has lost the plot and I think that you
know what we're saying overnight, but the attack on Gaza
City is utterly, utterly unacceptable, and that's what we have
been calling for is international community.

Speaker 3 (03:43):
Now for a long period of time.

Speaker 5 (03:45):
He is not listening to the international community.

Speaker 2 (03:48):
I don't know why I couldn't have said that in
the house.

Speaker 3 (03:50):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (03:50):
Interesting, Now what do you make of the fact that
Jasinda and I share and Grant and Chippee have decided
not to talk about what they did to us?

Speaker 2 (03:57):
Well, you know, we listened to the pulpit of truth
for so long, and all the aforementioned were at it
at one time or another. The Prime Minister durn at
it every basically every day when we're counting COVID numbers,
and one would have thought that this COVID inquiry, it
would be expected of them that they would appear. Well,

(04:21):
the COVID inquiry basically has will not be proceeding with
public hearings that say it's no longer justified because the
main players are Dern former Prime Minister of course at
the time, well not at the time, Chris Hopkins, Grant
Robertson Ascheverel. None of them are going to turn up.

(04:42):
They have given evidence, but one would have thought they
could have for the sake of the country to be
happy to turn up and answer some questions. They should
be put in stocks.

Speaker 1 (04:55):
That was a joke, obviously, but it's not good for
the brand, is It's so it's not just.

Speaker 2 (05:01):
You know, I have the courage of your convicture.

Speaker 1 (05:03):
Right, Verry, Thanks very much, Verry So pressing your political correspondence.

Speaker 3 (05:07):
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Speaker 4 (05:09):
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