National's "solution" to its outstanding $112,000 election advertising GST bill is a blatant attempt to avoid responsibility and dodge the law, Deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen says.
National owes five broadcasters the money for unpaid GST after a "misunderstanding" between party headquarters and its advertising agency meant the
party spent its entire $900,000 campaign advertising allowance without allowing for GST.
National has since refused to pay the bill, which would breach the law by pushing it over its election spending cap, and has failed to win support for a private member's bill that would allow it to pay the debt without being prosecuted.
Yesterday National president Judy Kirk said it did not want to "profit from the honest mistake", so National was offering to pay the amount owed to buy television and radio time for charities.
>> Nat's GST pain set to be charities' gain
It would be up to the broadcasters to decide which charities received the money.
Dr Cullen today said the proposed fix solved little and was just an attempt to avoid responsibility.
"What we are talking about is dodging the law," he said on National Radio.
"The National Party itself has stated absolutely clearly, it's a way of avoiding a conviction and a fine."
"They used this as a rort to get more time on television than they were entitled to and as a consequence they ought to be able to be convicted and pay a fine.
"Just giving some money to charity is always the rich man's way of getting out of a criminal offence," Dr Cullen said.
But National's deputy leader Gerry Brownlee today said National was not willing to knowingly break the law.
It would have also been illegal for the broadcasters to accept such a payment, he said.
Canwest, which owns TV3, has supported National's proposed solution and a spokeswoman for TVNZ yesterday said it was also happy to look at the proposal.
National owes money to:
* Television New Zealand - $57,369;
* TV3 - $20,013;
* Prime TV - $3,327;
* Sky Network - $6,887
* The Radio Bureau - $24,895
- NZPA
