Labour launches Pansy Wong website

MP Pansy Wong. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Pansy Wong may be gone from Cabinet, but the Labour Party is doing its best to keep the spotlight on questions over her use of the international travel subsidy.

Mrs Wong resigned from Cabinet last month because her husband was involved in a business deal while they were in China on a taxpayer-subsidised trip.

An inquiry ordered by Speaker Lockwood Smith investigated all her travel claims for the last 10 years and concluded there had been no other instances of the parliamentary rebate being used for business, which is against the rules.

It also said Mr Wong did not have any business interests in China, other than a hovercraft joint venture.

Labour has questioned the thoroughness of the inquiry by Hugh McPhail, calling for Prime Minister John Key to refer the case to Auditor-General Lyn Provost.

In a post on Labour's Red Alert website yesterday, MP Trevor Mallard said the party continued to receive information that raised questions about the completeness of the McPhail report.

Mr Mallard said that information was being loaded on to a new website, pansyfacts.co.nz, which also listed a number of questions Labour said the McPhail report had not addressed adequately.

Mr Mallard said Ms Provost was expected to decide this week whether she would look at the case.

- NZPA