James Shaw on Greens’ MP issues: ‘Disappointing’ Genter situation happened

Former Green Party co-leader James Shaw gives his last speech in Parliament. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Former Climate Change Minister, former Green Party co-leader, and soon to be former Green MP James Shaw is very much on his way out of the building.
When Herald’s politics podcast On the Tiles caught up with Shaw in his Parliament office on Friday (he’s still an MP until this Sunday), the podcast’s recording was interrupted as Parliament staff dropped off bubble wrap to help Shaw wrap up his things.
Shaw discussed his career, including negotiating the Zero Carbon Act with National MP Todd Muller, his fallout with NZ First, a conversation he had with Metiria Turei when he got rolled, and whether more could have been done to help MPs like Julie Anne Genter, whose blow-ups have featured in the past 13 months.
Shaw said he did not have a view on Genter’s actions in the House.
He did not say it was disappointing the incident happened on the night of his valedictory speech: “It’s disappointing that it occurred at all,” Shaw said.
He said it was hard to know what more the party could do to support MPs.
“It’s hard to know what else we can do. It is a really really tough job and I think it is a much harder job on women than it is on men just because of the misogyny,” he said.
In 2022, Shaw was briefly ousted from the co-leadership of his party. Shaw said he picked up the phone to Turei, who had left the co-leadership under difficult circumstances.
“I gave her a call to get her advice as someone who I had been very close to and who had been a co-leader. I just needed someone who was a bit out, and apart from it and who understood it in the way only a co-leader can understand it.
“She was great. She’s very straight with me without any judgement [and said] ‘you’ve done a great job as Climate Minister but you’ve lost the party,” he said.
Shaw is taking a job with Morrison, an investment firm. He will be ditching his Green Party membership, but only because he thinks it is appropriate in the new job.
“It’s more because what I’m doing professionally I think really requires me to be not [a Green],” Shaw said.
Listen to the full episode of the On the Tiles podcast for more from James Shaw on his career, working with Labour and NZ First, and the challenges facing climate change legislation.
On the Tiles is available on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes are available on Fridays. The podcast is hosted by NZ Herald deputy politics editor Thomas Coughlan.