The leader of New Zealand First is pushing back on suggestions his party is to blame for a Bill seeking to ban gay conversion therapy not being put forward by the Government.
Earlier this week, the Labour Party announced that if re-elected, it would ban conversion therapy, the pseudoscientific practice of trying to change an individual's sexual orientation.
"Conversion therapy is based on the misguided idea that people are wrong or broken because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. This is fundamentally wrong," rainbow spokesperson Tāmati Coffey said.
Back in 2018, Labour MP Marja Lubeck lodged a Member's Bill to put an end to the therapy, but this was never put on the Government's own legislative agenda.
Grant Robertson on Monday said the policy didn't have support across the Government.
"What we are now saying though is this will be something we will push in government and we will pass legislation," he said.
Now, in an interview with LGBT+ magazine Express, Winston Peters has pushed back on suggestions his party is to blame for a lack of progress to date.
He was asked if the ban didn't become a Government Bill because New Zealand First was blocking it, as the magazine said Labour and the Greens have suggested.
"You know what’s appalling about that, I find it phenomenal is the deceit where people can't own up to their own lack of political influence and their own lack of political planning or political persuasion and have conveniently blamed New Zealand First," he said.
"I find it disgraceful and dishonest to the extreme."
He said the parties should be asked: "When did you show New Zealand First your bill?".
According to Peters, they never did, and again pushed back on New Zealand First being at fault.
In an interview with Express in February, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she was confident Lubeck's Bill would pass if it was drawn in the Member's Bill ballot. But for it to become a Government Bill "it requires all of the Government to support it".
She said it was up to other leaders to share their position. The Greens have long supported banning conversion therapy.
Ardern also spoke to Express this week, again saying numbers are needed in the House to pass the legislation.
"I will commit our numbers to delivering this and I hope there will be other parties in parliament who will support it. If New Zealand delivers a parliament that doesn’t give us those numbers, I will do what I can to still get it over the line, regardless."
On Thursday, asked if New Zealand First blocked the banning of conversion therapy this term, Ardern said it was her understanding that there hadn't been the support to make it possible.
"We didn't have the support for it to do it previously. It looks like now we do," she said.
"My understanding is that there wasn't support for it from spokespeople from within the parties that we required to get it through."
She said that wasn't the Green Party.
The issue of conversion therapy also came up on Tuesday when National leader Judith Collins was asked if she supported banning the practice.
"It's pretty hard to actually define it. My advice to any parents who are worried about their kids, because it is clearly parents who are organising this, is actually just be grateful your kids are alive.
"I would tell people don't do that to their kids. I don't know what is meant when you talk about the detail, but I’m happy to say to any parent, just be grateful for your child."
She later said she would do more research on the practice, but wouldn't commit to banning it.
