National Party leader Simon Bridges says he supports the planned housing development on the Ihumātao site in South Auckland and protestors don't have a right to get in the way of lawful activity.
Protestors have been camped at the site in Māngere for a week in a bid to prevent Fletcher Building constructing nearly 500 houses on Māori land that sits next to an historic reserve.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced on Friday that no building will take place at Ihumātao while the Government and other parties try to broker a solution.
The opposition leader has told TVNZ's Q+A in an interview for tonight's programme that local iwi are for the development and Fletchers have been very sensitive in the way they're doing it. Mr Bridges says he supports 480 new houses going on the site in the way Fletchers and the local iwi want to do it.
Asked by host Jack Tame would he support police removing the people who are occupying the land at the moment, Mr Bridges said the law is pretty simple when it comes to protests.
"You have an absolute right in this country to legitimate, fair, vociferous protest. You don't have a right to break the law and get in the way of other people's lawful activity," he said.
Asked are they trespassing and should they be moved on by police, Mr Bridges said he doesn't know "the ins and out", but that his opinion is pretty simple.
"If they're breaking the law that is a different proposition from lawful, sometimes vociferous protest."
Pressed on whether the protestors should be moved on if police deem they are trespassing, he said, "Laws need to be observed. And I want to live in a society where actually people can get a house. And we're doing something about that."
The National leader said he thinks Jacinda Ardern has "made a bad mistake" and "set a very bad precedent" on Ihumātao and that this shows the Government is "not serious about building more houses".
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