Last year, National became the first political party in New Zealand to be investigated by the serious Fraud Office over its political donations. And now, NZ First has become the second:
The police has referred the New Zealand First Foundation to the Serious Fraud Office over donations the Electoral Commission says should have been treated as party donations.
The police referred the matter on to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) almost immediately after having the matter referred to them by the Electoral Commission on Monday.
In a statement, the Commission said in its view "the donations were not properly transmitted to the Party and not disclosed as required by the Electoral Act 1993".
This - and the fact that charges have been laid over National's donations - is a hopeful sign that law enforcement is finally taking our electoral laws seriously. And hopefully that will get politicians to take them seriously too, rather than their usual game of trying to circumvent them.
Meanwhile, Winston is blustering about going to the police about the leak which has led to this investigation. Because obviously, the real crime here is that someone told everyone about his dodgy dealings. But I guess that's just how the world looks from Winston's privileged, establishment perspective: when you're finally subject to the law like everyone else, it looks like victimisation rather than justice.
