Source: Otago Daily Times
Housing New Zealand apologised to a tenant after an election hoarding was taken from a property it owns in the Dunedin suburb of Brockville.
A senior manager acknowledged HNZ policy had been breached, leaving Nadine Simpson again free to show her support for the National Party.
Ms Simpson accepted the apology yesterday, but urged the state-owned corporation to protect tenants' rights to free speech.
'It shouldn't matter whether you live in a Housing New Zealand house or your own, your right to ask to support someone's campaign should stay the same,' Ms Simpson said.
Brockville Rd's lone National Party placard was removed by a HNZ staff member on Tuesday, without warning or a note explaining what had happened.
Ms Simpson learned the sign was in the back of an HNZ car yesterday morning, after another staffer said there was no record of it having been removed at all.
The matter was referred to officials in Wellington, who reminded local staff the signs were permitted on properly tenanted property.
Housing New Zealand's acting southern regional manager, Garry Williams, yesterday said the corporation apologised for removing the sign, which came down as 'a result of a misunderstanding'.
Mr Williams said the sign would be put back by the afternoon, and staff were reminded the policy was 'very clear' and that tenants were allowed to erect political signs.
When asked, Mr Williams said HNZ had not breached the Residential Tenancies Act because it was only obliged to give notice to enter the premises, and its staff had only entered the section.
University of Otago senior law lecturer Andrew Geddis reminded HNZ that government-owned entities were obliged to uphold a citizen's right to freedom of speech, as protected under the Bill of Rights.
Hoardings were not protected by the Electoral Act, but it was arguably an offence to take anything, 'without colour of right', from private - or tenanted - property, Mr Geddis said.
Dunedin-based National Party list candidate Katherine Rich, whose sign was removed, said HNZ should have been cautious before making a 'stuff up' that eroded freedom of speech.
Ms Simpson asked Mrs Rich's campaign team to replace the sign before the original was returned.
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