[ad_1]
Tauranga MP Sam Uffindell is under fire for comments that going to the supermarket once a month in his National jacket “looking like the everyday man” is excellent “publicity” and “gives my wife a break”.
The National MP was speaking in parliament in June in support of a Grocery Industry Competition Bill, but it was Uffindell’s comments about his own shopping habits that grabbed attention this week.
He said grocery shopping was “not only … an excellent way to get a bit of publicity with a National Party jacket on my back, looking like the everyday man … it gives my wife a break, and I get to understand what the current prices are”.
Implications in the speech that it was a woman’s job to do chores have been mocked online and satirised.
“Maybe he can cook the dinner too to give her a longer break,” said one comment on Twitter.
“I bet he even cleans the toilet once a year too.”
ROBERT KITCHIN/Stuff
National MP Sam Uffindell on his way into caucus.
One urged men to all post their small things to help the household using the hashtag #UffingIt.
When asked at a press conference this week whether Uffindell’s comments were “sexist” National Party leader Christopher Luxon replied that it was a matter between Uffindell and his wife.
supplied/Stuff
Tauranga MP Sam Uffindell has been criticised for comments he made about shopping.
People also suggested the MP was out of touch with the cost of living crisis, given his surprise that he was “smacked” when he saw the cost of cheese at $20.
Cheese has been this price in supermarkets for more than a year.
Comments expressed surprise at his admission that going to the supermarket was a chance to act like an “everyday” person and get excellent publicity.
Uffindell has had a short but controversial political career. He was stood down from the party while an investigator looked into bullying claims and allegations about his behaviour while at school and university.
In a statement to Stuff, Uffindell said, “The nature and demands of my job are such that I am often away from home and my family, which means my wife carries the load at home –something I am very grateful to her for.
“Whenever I get the chance, I try to pick up the household duties that my wife normally takes care of, and in doing so recently I’ve been shocked by how much the cost of basic household items have increased.
“It reinforces the need for a National Government to tackle the drivers of inflation, reduce the cost of living and rebuild our economy so that people can get ahead.”
The Grocery Competition Bill proposes interventions to improve competition in the supermarket sector to make it more like other markets.
[ad_2]