3181 (2024). Rt Hon Chris Hipkins to the Prime Minister

3181 (2024). Rt Hon Chris Hipkins to the Prime Minister: On what date, if any, was he first made aware of Hon. David Seymour comments regarding a TVNZ journalist "These are the people that cry, oh you've got to give us sympathy, and you're inhumane and you should be kinder to us”, “I think it shows their delightful lack of self-awareness and immaturity” and “Immediately into my mind flashed a particularly self-indulgent piece of reporting I saw sometime last week. I think the total overreaction to my comments by media that they might need a bit less indulgence and a bit more self-reflection really just served to illustrate my point perfectly.”?

Rt Hon Christopher Luxon: I was made aware of the comments on the day David Seymour made them. With regard to his comments on TVNZ’s coverage of the Government’s announcement about making pseudoephedrine available in pharmacies, I was not made aware of these until I was asked at my post-Cabinet press conference on March 11. I do not expect to be made aware of every comment every Minister makes about the media.