Field granted leave for Supreme Court appeal

Taito Phillip Field during his sentencing on bribery and corruption charges at the Auckland High Court in 2009. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Former MP Taito Phillip Field has been granted leave to appeal his conviction on corruption charges to the Supreme Court.

Field, who is currently serving a six-year jail term, had unsuccessfully gone to the Court of Appeal last year to get his convictions overturned and his sentence reduced.

But Justices Peter Blanchard, John McGrath and William Young today granted him leave to appeal on the question of whether the Court of Appeal correctly stated the test for corruptly accepting a bribe under the Crimes Act.

It was the only ground under which it allowed the appeal, saying other grounds for appeal raised by his lawyers were not arguable.

They also said the effective sentence of six years' imprisonment could not be said to be manifestly excessive for the offending as a whole.

Field, the former Labour MP for Mangere and a cabinet minister at one point, was jailed in October 2009 after being convicted by a jury in the High Court in Auckland of 11 charges of bribery and corruption as an MP and 15 charges of attempting to obstruct or pervert the course of justice.

He was charged after then Prime Minister Helen Clark ordered an inquiry into allegations Field had traded immigration favours for tiling, painting or plastering work on his properties in New Zealand and Samoa by Thai nationals.

- NZPA