By Duncan Garner
Former Labour Minister Shane Jones arrived in town to face the music and the media after admitting to watching x-rated pornographic movies.
“I'm not going to mount a defence, it was a lapse. I was wrong,” he says.
Jones has clearly been caught out; he's embarrassed and ashamed.
He wrongly used his ministerial credit card to buy adult movies in hotels in 2007 and 2008.
“I put my hand up for the fact that I shouldn't have but from time to time I did watch blue movies."
Time to time is an understatement of course. In January 2008 he purchased four pornographic movies over two nights.
“I'm not a sex maniac but hey, I’m a red-blooded male,” he says.
“They weren't all that good, as I recall.”
Watch a full video of Jones talking to reporters about the pornography scandal
In all Jones purchased about 20 pornographic movies.
He used the card to pay for newspapers, CDs, magazines, wine, panadol, Powerade, cashew nuts, Moro bars and flavoured milk.
Jones admits some of his spending broke the rules - he's paid back close to $6000 for what is a clear pattern of abuse of the credit card.
“If the public feel that I need to eat more of my own vomit then I accept I have done nothing honourable,” he says.
One night Jones clearly had the munchies too.
A receipt shows he emptied the mini bar - having an orange juice, apple juice, Toblerone, Moro bar, Cadbury Black Forest, roast cashews and a mineral water.
He also bought a belt, shavers and batteries.
Some of this was within the rules - some wasn't.
“It would appear that I have been the last of the big spenders,” he says.
Jones talked on RadioLIVE earlier today about the scandal
Jones was warned repeatedly that he was breaking the rules - he ignored them until this warning to his office before the last election which said:
"To avoid any embarrassment for your minister we would ask that all these outstanding issues be resolved urgently, especially given the upcoming election and a change of administration."
Jones says he will not resign as an MP.
3 News asked his deputy leader if he should.
“No, I don't think there are many people who are beyond redemption,” says Labour deputy leader Annette King.
One lighter moment in the material shows that Jones's taste for porn extended to his dining - he ordered a “Prawnographic" pizza at One Red Dog in 2008.
But this is serious - Jones's career is in tatters - he'll survive for now but he's damaged goods and going nowhere.
3 News
source: newshub archive
