- Green Party delegates have unanimously agreed to use the waka-jumping legislation to oust Darleen Tana from Parliament.
- The party has now written to the Speaker, who will make the final call on using the law.
- It is the first time the party-hopping provision has been used since the early 2000s.
Former Green MP Darleen Tana may finally be on her way out of Parliament after Thursday night's party membership vote to oust her.
The independent MP was suspended from caucus seven months ago amid allegations of migrant exploitation at her husband's business.
The Greens' co-leaders have repeatedly called for her to resign after an investigation found she "likely" knew about the claims and did not tell the party.
The party's caucus on Thursday night sought a consensus vote from its membership to use the waka-jumping provision that the party has historically opposed.
"After a thorough discussion, those delegates all came to the unanimous, full conclusion to endorse that use of that legislation by caucus," co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick told reporters after the meeting.
Darleen Tana's future in Parliament is now in the hands of Speaker Gerry Brownlee. Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER
Former Green Party leader Metiria Turei and former Green MP Kevin Hague were among those who spoke at the meeting, she said.
"I didn't know Metiria would be one of those who chose to speak and yeah that was huge for her, obviously, to offer those reflections on our past and where we've come from but also where we are today," Swarbrick said.
Former leader James Shaw once described the waka-jumping law as a "dead rat" that the Greens had to swallow as part of its confidence and supply agreement with Labour in 2018.
The party-hopping provision had been part of New Zealand law in the early 2000s but eventually expired and and New Zealand First went on to campaign to bring it back.
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters was quick to post on X on Thursday night, calling the membership vote "ironic" and accusing the Greens of virtue signalling.
There’s nothing more ironic than the Green Party meeting tonight to vote on using the Waka Jumping law - the very law they have lectured us all on about it being so anti democratic.
— Winston Peters (@winstonpeters) October 17, 2024
Chloe Swarbrick’s opening speech to her members may as well just be “do as I say not as I do -…
Swarbrick acknowledged the party's "vexed history" with the legislation but said she was "incredibly encouraged" that the Greens' membership had come to a unanimous decision.
"We're aware of our history of this. We're really aware of our history of this and we've really mulled over it. The Greens love a yarn.
"We have worked through all of the challenges here and with the challenges that are in front of us, we have done our best to act in a principled manner and to weigh everything up and come to the conclusion that we have and we feel very comfortable with that."
The Green Party has now written to Speaker Gerry Brownlee, who will make the final call on whether or not the threshold of affecting "the proportionality" of Parliament has been met.
Swarbrick said she believed it had.
"She hasn't been in the house and hasn't actually had somebody there to hold her proxies in all instances when she has indicated already that she would be and would vote in our favour."
The waka-jumping law has not been used since 2003, when the ACT Party expelled Donna Awatere Huata over allegations of fraud.
RNZ has approached Tana for comment.
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