Peter Dunne: Former MP discusses Green MP Benjamin Doyle's resignation from parliament

Green MP Benjamin Doyle's resignation from Parliament was inevitable.

That's according to former MP Peter Dunne - who says it's the right outcome for both Doyle and Parliament.

Doyle - who faced questions over controversial social media posts earlier this year - says they've faced an onslaught of hate and violent threats. 

Dunne says Doyle's made the right choice. 

He says it removes a distraction from Parliament and removes Doyle from an environment in which they clearly didn't fit. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now Benjamin Doyle, the Green MP, is quitting Parliament. Benjamin
says they've decided to leave after an onslaught of hate,
vitriol and violent threats ever since their Bible belt bussy
Instagram account hit the headlines earlier this year. Peter Dunn
as a former leader of the United Future Party and
a political commentator and with us Hi Peter Hi Heaver,
do you reckon this resignation was inevitable?

Speaker 2 (00:20):
I think it probably was, and I think it's probably
the best thing for Benjamin Doyle and the best thing
for Parliament. Actually, it removes a distraction, It removes Benjamin
Doyor from an environment in which he was clearly uncomfortable
and didn't fit, and I think it's just the best
outcome all round.

Speaker 1 (00:37):
Really, do you reckon that it is as Benjamin has
framed it, that they've decided to leave or is it
more likely that the Green parties told them to leave.

Speaker 2 (00:44):
I suspect it's a bit of both. I suspect they
would have been not unhappy at his decision when it
was revealed to them. But as I say, best all around.
Having said that, what it does, of course is put
the onus back on the Green Party, they selected this
person in the first please, they're responsible really for determining

(01:05):
their suitability to be in parliament, and they clearly failed.
And you know, it's part one more of a sort
of a litany of failures really that they've had during
this parliamentary term in that respect. So I think the
Green Party will need to do some pretty serious soul
searching about who it selects as candidates in the future,
the process by which it does that, and the sort
of the support it gives those people once they do

(01:27):
get into parliament.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
Peter, can you think of another party that's had like
this many MPs just filter through in a short period
of time.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
No, No, this is unprecedented, and I think it goes
back to what I was just saying. I think people
were selected, I think for the Green Party list more
by the sort of the interest group that they represented
or the potential voter base that they appealed to, rather
than their suitability to serve as members of Parliament. And
I think you know, from the Goali's Government incident, Darning Tana,

(01:57):
now the Benjamin Doyle incident, it's just been one thing
after another for them, and it's not coincidence.

Speaker 1 (02:03):
No, it's completely bonkers. Peter, Thank you as always enjoy
your weekend. Peter Dunn, former United Future leader and political commentator.

Speaker 2 (02:10):
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