New Zealand PM floats privacy laws after staffer accused of filming women
Senior aide Michael Forbes resigned after a local news outlet alleged he covertly recorded audio of sessions with sex workers and secretly photographed women at the gym. PHOTO: ST FILE
New Zealand PM floats privacy laws after staffer accused of filming women
New Zealand's prime minister floated new privacy laws on June 5 after his own press secretary was allegedly caught taping sex workers without consent.
Senior aide Michael Forbes resigned after a local news outlet alleged he covertly recorded audio of sessions with sex workers and secretly photographed women at the gym.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he was 'shocked' – but it was unclear whether Mr Forbes had broken the law.
'If you're a New Zealander you ask quite legitimate questions about how does this behaviour happen, and is it legal or illegal,' he told reporters on June 5 .
'I have that same reaction to it as well.'
Mr Luxon flagged new privacy laws that could be drafted to clear up the legal grey area.
Forbes – who was Mr Luxon's deputy chief press secretary – apologised in a statement sent to media.
'I want to offer my sincerest apologies to the women I have harmed,' he said.
The scandal came to light after a sex worker noticed Mr Forbes's phone was recording audio while he took a shower, according to an investigation published on June 4 by New Zealand news outlet Stuff.
Mr Forbes phone was then found to contain photos of women in compromising positions at the gym, and a video shot through a window showing women getting dressed at night, Stuff reported.
'In the past, I was in a downward spiral due to unresolved trauma and stress, and when confronted with the impacts of my behaviour a year ago, I sought professional help, which is something I wish I had done much earlier,' Mr Forbes said in a statement.
'What I failed to do then was make a genuine attempt to apologise.' AFP
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