September 08, 2017
Fox blast for Labour Maori MPs
Maori Party co-leader Marama Fox says Labour’s Maori MPs are unable to advance anything for Maori without the say so of the party’s Pakeha leadership.
Ms Fox is upset at Labour deputy leader Kelvin Davis’s refusal to match the Maori Party promise to make it compulsory for all school pupils to learn te reo Maori.
She says it’s symptomatic of a wider problem in Labour.
"They continue to dismiss Maori issues as having no relevance or no importance – ‘Oh, it’s about the teachers Marama, we don’t have enough teachers.’ Well of course we have to make a plan but make a commitment first. If these people think having them MPs sitting in the Labour Party is the face they need to ensure they have better outcomes for Maori they are sadly mistaken," Ms Fox says.
She says Kelvin Davis was made Labour’s deputy leader as a tokenistic gesture to capture the Maori vote, and she doubts he will stay in the role for long.
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