New Zealand’s deputy PM has said he “does not care” after being slammed by British band Chumbawamba for using their hit Tubthumping at a political rally.
Winston Peters, leader of the right-wing New Zealand First Party, sparked controversy by using the hit - known for its refrain, “I get knocked down, I get up again” - ahead of a divisive speech last weekend.
The band criticised his use of their song ,that made it to number two in the UK charts in 1997, saying they did not approve of his politics, and asked their label to send him a formal ‘cease and desist’ legal letter.
But writing on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Peters said: “It seems the media care more about the Chumbawamba story than we do. We actually don't care.
"There's nothing to 'cease or desist.'”
He added: “The song worked like a charm for our first public meeting after the election. The over 700 people in the crowd thought so too.
“I would use another of their hit song titles as a quip at the end of this post but unfortunately they only had one.”
Mr Peters, who is part of New Zealand’s ruling coalition, gave a state of the nation speech after using the song in which he discussed removing gender and sexuality lessons from the school curriculum among other divisive measures.
He also strongly criticised the idea of co-governance, where decision making is shared between MÄori communities and government representatives.
Speaking to The Guardian, Boff Whalley, the band’s lead guitarist, said Chumbawamba did not give the politician permission to use the song, does not share any of Mr Peters’ views.
“Chumbawamba wrote the song ‘Tubthumping’ as a song of hope and positivity, so it seems entirely odd that the ‘I get knocked down …’ refrain is being used by New Zealand’s deputy prime minister Winston Peters as he barks his divisive, small-minded, bigoted policies during his recent speeches,” he said.
He added: “[We] would like to remind him that the song was written for and about ordinary people and their resilience, not about rich politicians trying to win votes by courting absurd conspiracy theories.”
Under the country’s coalition agreement, the deputy prime minister role will be held for the first 18 months of the election cycle by 78-year-old lawmaker Peters, before he hands the baton for the remaining 18 months to David Seymour, leader of the libertarian ACT Party.
In 2011,Chumbawamba previously demanded UKIP to not use its song after Nigel Farage used the hit during a party conference.
