- This story has been updated since it first appeared. In an earlier version of the story a spokeswoman from Resources Minister Shane Jones' office said his helicopter ride was paid for by the Manuherikia Catchment Group. The flight was paid for by Manuherikia River Limited.
Labour's Ingrid Leary has been accused of spreading misinformation and hypocrisy as the battle over Otago’s rivers made it to Wellington this week.
As the government moved to stop the Otago Regional Council from voting on its land and water plan on Wednesday, the Taieri MP said she had uncovered councillors privately calling on the government to stop the vote.
She had also uncovered Resources Minister Shane Jones failing to record a helicopter flight funded by lobbyists in the gift register.
In response, Cr Michael Laws called the "hypocrisy" of her statements "breathtakingly stupid".
And a spokeswoman for Mr Jones said Ms Leary was "completely incorrect in her claims".
Mr Jones travelled to Falls Dam on March 1 at the invitation of National’s Waitaki MP Miles Anderson, she said.
He got there by helicopter from Bendigo Station.
At the dam were Otago regional councillor Gary Kelliher, Falls Dam Company chairman Murray Heckler, company director Phil Smith, Omakau Irrigation Company general manager Roger Williams, Mr Anderson and an MBIE official.
Mr Jones then travelled by helicopter to Silverlight Studios in Wanaka.
The helicopter was paid for by Manuherikia River Limited and had been added to the gift register the day before the flight - not after.
"As far as I am aware, Manuherikia River Limited is not a lobby group," the spokeswoman said.
"I trust you will go back to Ingrid Leary and challenge her on her weak attempt at creating news out of nothing."
For his part, Cr Laws called out the hypocrisy of three Labour MPs, including Ms Leary, who criticised "locally elected councillors for effectively representing their constituents".
"To suggest that there is something undemocratic about any elected councillor contacting any government MP or minister is just breathtakingly stupid.
"It is the ‘job’ of councillors to advance the best interests of their region and if that involves informing government parties of issues that affect their constituents and region, then that’s true democracy."
He questioned whether Labour’s Ms Leary, Rachel Brooking and former environment minister David Parker had forgotten the five years of "direct intervention" at the council led by Mr Parker.
Ms Leary said yesterday the issue she was concerned about was "a democratically elected body working through due process".
She said if Mr Jones had wanted a well-rounded discussion of the issues facing the Manuherikia catchment, he likely would have found the entire group of regional councillors willing to engage.
"It’s a shame that the minister continues to fly over the issue, selectively dropping into the conversation and avoiding those grounded in the challenging environment as the community works through improving their water quality," she said.
"Were it not for my highlighting the minister’s view from on high the community would be none the wiser that he was even remotely interested in their concerns."
In response to Cr Laws’ criticism, Labour’s environment spokeswoman, Dunedin MP Rachel Brooking, said following existing law to intervene at a council was "very different from saying to stop work on following the law, because the government intends to change it at some point".
Blocking the council from notifying its land and water plan meant $18 million of ratepayer money used to develop the plan as well as years of consultation "goes down the drain".
