Luxury lodge sale helped by Anderton

Economic Development Minister Jim Anderton intervened to speed up an application by a luxury lodge owner he "barely knew" and who has since left New Zealand, leaving millions of dollars in debts.

The Wigram MP was approached by lawyers acting for Englishman Gregory Leniston and his wife, Julie, in 2003, seeking his assistance with their Overseas Investment Commission (OIC) application.

Mr Anderton was told the couple had put down a non-refundable $200,000 deposit on Otahuna Lodge, at Taitapu, near Christchurch. The deal was dependent on them getting the green light from the OIC by an agreed date or they would lose their money.

"I indicated to the Overseas Investment Commission on their behalf, because they were in my electorate, that this was going to cause them a fair bit of difficulty if they didn't know for certain [by that date].

"It seemed a bit unfair if it was just a matter of process. The commission made the decision by that date, which happened to be 'yes'. It could have been 'no'," Mr Anderton said.

He also stepped in to help them obtain a temporary visa for their daughter, Tara, who wanted to come to New Zealand for her 21st birthday.

"I made some inquiries through Immigration for them to see whether she could come back to New Zealand for her birthday," Mr Anderton said. "The immigration authorities not unreasonably said, 'Yes, of course'."

In a letter to the OIC supplied to The Press under the Official Information Act, the Lenistons' lawyer names Jim Anderton as a possible character referee for the pair.

"We might also mention that it would probably be possible to obtain a character statement from the Honourable Jim Anderton, to whom our client is known and who has suggested on two occasions that he would be prepared to assist our client with matters relating to his visa and OIC approval," the letter says.

Mr Anderton denied offering to give a reference, saying he barely knew the Lenistons.

"The truth is I couldn't have given a character statement because I wouldn't have known them," he said. "I can't imagine that I offered to because I wouldn't have known them well enough."

Ilam MP Gerry Brownlee said Mr Anderton should make public all communications from his office relating to the Lenistons, Otahuna and their OIC application, including the letter from the Lenistons' lawyer asking for his assistance, to show no preferential treatment was given.

"This is a messy-looking affair," Mr Brownlee said. "The Lenistons, who paid a record $4.3 million for the Canterbury property, now for sale, were judged bankrupt last week."

Julie Leniston remains in Christchurch with two of the couple's four children, but Greg Leniston has left the country and is not expected to return.

One of the companies they jointly direct is in receivership and liquidation, while another is in receivership.

The amount owed to creditors remains unclear but is estimated to be $9 million.

- NZPA