TARANAKI-King Country MP Barbara Kuriger was active in campaigning for farmers while she held the agriculture portfolio, including attending the first Groundswell protest in Ōtorohanga (pictured). FILE PHOTO
NATIONAL’S Taranaki-King Country MP Barbara Kuriger has a new portfolio and party ranking following controversy over a conflict of interest with MPI last year.
Barbara now has the conservation portfolio and is unranked below the 20th position.
She was previously ranked 10th and held the portfolios of agriculture, biosecurity and food safety.
Conversations with National party leader Christopher Luxon led to her standing down from those portfolios in October last year, accepting a “significant” conflict of interest over how she handled communications with the Ministry for Primary Industries about a family dispute.
The contents of the communication, via Kuriger’s Parliamentary email address, were released to media organisation Newsroom through the Official Information Act.
Newsroom reported the emails were about the prosecution of her son Tony on animal cruelty charges.
In January 2020, Tony Kuriger admitted to failing to help multiple cows with chronic lameness when instructed to do so by a vet, dating back to 2017 (Waitomo News, August 13, 2020).
When she resigned from her portfolios last year, Barbara said disputes with MPI over the events of 2017 had created a “blurred line” with her portfolio responsibilities.
“Although the dispute is, for me, a personal matter which I have endeavored at all times to keep separate from my professional role, I accept there has been a conflict of interest which I should have recognised sooner and managed.”
At a press conference shortly after Barbara stepped down from her portfolios, Christopher Luxon said it was unlikely she would hold agriculture portfolios in future.
Bay of Plenty MP Todd Muller has picked up the agriculture portfolio, which he became the acting spokesperson of in the fallout last year.
Selwyn MP Nicola Grigg now has Barbara’s other two previous portfolios of biosecurity and food safety.
This week Barbara posted on Facebook to say she was “thrilled” with her new conservation portfolio, along with a photo of a tui she took during the break while she completed the Queen Charlotte Track.
