Labour’s Hamilton West MP has almost certainly lost the trust of his caucus colleagues, but when MPs meet on Tuesday afternoon, they’ll be hoping to find a way to get rid of him without triggering a costly by-election, writes political editor Jo Moir
Analysis: There are roughly five possible outcomes for Labour backbench MP Doctor Gaurav Sharma when the caucus meets to decide his fate.
The two most unlikely paths are Sharma being forgiven and staying on in caucus, and at the opposite end of the spectrum it’s almost a given the Labour leader won’t write to the Speaker and force him out of Parliament using the waka-jumping legislation.
Sharma staying on would require collective trust from his caucus, which no longer exists, and triggering the waka-jumping legislation would result in a by-election - an expense to taxpayers the Prime Minister will be doing her best to avoid.
That means a third option - Sharma quitting and prompting a by-election - isn’t on the cards for Labour either.
Somewhat ironically the two best options would require the leadership and caucus to convince him to stay.
That would see Sharma remain in Parliament either as an independent MP holding onto the seat, or alternatively keeping the seat as a Labour MP but suspending him from caucus.
One keeps him within the party fold, the other does not. Both keep him away from caucus conversations.
There is no review underway into the he said/she said allegations and responses that have been going back and forward between Sharma and the Prime Minister, which continued Monday.
Sharma tactically published a new post on Facebook right as Ardern was heading into her weekly post-Cabinet media conference, forcing her to answer fresh allegations on the spot.
Ardern says she’s seen no evidence of the bullying claims made by the backbench MP against former chief whip Kieran McAnulty despite Sharma’s post including alleged screenshots from his caucus colleagues saying they too had experienced bullying.
Parliamentary Service and the Labour Party whips continue to work with Sharma and the staff in his office although Newsroom understands Sharma has stopped communicating with those working to resolve the employment dispute in his office.
On the other hand, Ardern also had to answer questions of fresh allegations raised about another backbench MP, Tukituki’s Anna Lorck, after a former staffer told Stuff she had laid a complaint about her treatment by the MP.
While Lorck is playing by the party rules and likely to survive, the same can’t be said for Sharma who appears to be going out all guns blazing.
An investigation is underway into Lorck’s office, but Newsroom understands, unlike Sharma, she is engaging with the whips and Parliamentary Service to resolve the issues.
With more than 230 staff across the 65 Labour Party offices, Ardern says it’s not surprising there would be employment disputes of all kinds of nature, and only the significant ones get brought to her attention.
Other than Sharma and Lorck she was unwilling to tell Newsroom whether any other Labour MPs had employment disputes currently being addressed in their office.
She also pointed out that the role of whips is to oversee leave and instruct MPs on when they needed to be in the House on duty, and that meant there could often be tensions with the whips’ office.
As for whether there’s rampant bullying in her party, Ardern was adamant that’s not the case.
But Newsroom understands the Labour Party anticipates there will be other employment disputes being investigated, of varying levels, just given the size of the party and the nature of the work.
It’s also likely other parties within Parliament have disputes underway as well.
But that’s no different to any medium-sized business that will encounter HR and personal grievance issues of their own.
Sharma and Lorck are both confident in their own abilities and have personality traits that some would find difficult to work with.
Newsroom understands it didn’t come as a great surprise to those within Labour that these two backbenchers have come to the attention of the Parliamentary Service.
The dynamic between MPs and their staff, and the lack of a direct employer/employee relationship, means expectations can end up going beyond what is deemed appropriate.
While Lorck is playing by the party rules and likely to survive, the same can’t be said for Sharma who appears to be going out all guns blazing.
Parliament is a difficult work environment and government backbenchers have the worst job of all with absolutely no power or influence, especially in a caucus the size of Ardern’s.
While the allegations Sharma has made might not be the whole truth, it’s not impossible to believe that he and others in his class of 2020 have at times felt bullied simply by being told to put their head down and toe the party line.
After all, bullying can be subjective.
