Jones must step down from fisheries job, says Brownlee

New Labour MP Shane Jones should step down immediately from his $70,000-a-year fisheries chairman job, National deputy leader Gerry Brownlee says.

Mr Jones yesterday -- after consulting with Caretaker Prime Minister Helen Clark -- said he would stand down as one of seven directors of the Maori fisheries trust Te Ohu Kaimoana after an undefined "transition period".

He had earlier said there was no issue with him holding the position but National had said it was an inappropriate for an MP to do the job.

Mr Jones needed to drop the role before Parliament sat next month, Mr Brownlee said.

"It's outrageous -- the guy is a ministerial appointment -- the point here is does this mean now that Ministers might start appointing current Members of Parliament to SOE boards and all sorts of things."

- NZPA