There are two MPs who have been in the media the past week, both for different reasons, but both related to bullying.
It started with Tauranga MP Sam Uffindell fronting questions over a night-time attack at his high school boarding house, admitting to beating a younger student when he was a teen.
The National Party was under the spotlight when a new allegation arose, of which Uffindell denies, from a former flatmate.
It led to him being stood down, with an investigation launched.
Just a few days later, Dr Gaurav Sharma, the Labour MP for Hamilton West, wrote an opinion piece alleging ‘rampant bullying’ at Parliament with Parliamentary Services, the Whip’s office and the Prime Minister’s office all involved.
They have all denied the allegations, saying it was an employment matter that also involved other staff members and must be handled as such.
Sharma reiterated his complaints in a lengthy Facebook post, followed by another one just before the PM’s post-cabinet press conference on Monday.
That pressure culminated in a unanimous decision to suspend Sharma from the caucus for breaching trust, with an opportunity for him to re-join in December providing there are no further breaches.
For Uffindell, it’s unclear at this point what course of action National will take, and it will be dependent on the results of the investigation.
Both MPs are currently still in their parties.
What happens if an MP is booted out of their political party?
It makes it more complicated if the MP holds an electorate seat – making a possible departure from Parliament a costly one if a by-election with a million-dollar price tag is triggered.
There are a few ways this could play out.
A resignation is the most straightforward, and the least messy.
A political party could choose to expel them from the party, but choose not to trigger a by-election, allowing them to remain in Parliament as an independent.
This might look like what Jami-Lee Ross did a few years ago. He resigned from National just as the party expelled him, so he remained an MP, retaining his Botany electorate but without being in a political party.
However, if a party wants the MP out entirely, the Waka-Jumping provisions could be applied, leading them to lose their seat.
The Electoral Integrity Act was a change that allows an MP to be expelled from Parliament if they choose to quit their party.
This happens either by the MP in question writing to the Speaker to ask to be recognised as an independent or a member of another political party. This is unlikely because the process of sending that letter triggers that MP's seat to become vacant, resulting in what is effectively a resignation.
Or, the party leader could write to the Speaker saying the MP staying on is going to mess with the proportionality of said political party.
The leader would need at least two-thirds of their caucus to support this action and the MP in question would get 21 days to respond.
The MP could fight for their seat, in the case of a by-election, and run again as an independent MP. If you were a list MP, the next person on the party list would simply take your spot.
The Waka Jumping option is available to all parties - however, it is unlikely National will utilise the legislation.
National voted against the law change in 2018 and still oppose the legislation. Leader Christopher Luxon says the party would repeal it if in government.
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