The New Zealand First Leader, Winston Peters, has offered to drive multi-millionaire broadcaster Paul Holmes to the nearest international airport if he goes through with a threat to leave New Zealand for Australia.

Holmes has publicly defended the huge salaries paid to TVNZ newsreaders and front people. His own salary is in excess of $750,000. In the New Zealand Herald today Holmes suggested that he could take his skills across the Tasman “if the Prime Minister likes.”

Mr Peters said that the Prime Minister is justified in questioning the vast sums that TVNZ staff pay to themselves instead of spending the money on making quality programmes or providing free to air live coverage of major events.

“The debacle over the media superstars and their huge State funded contracts is sickening to New Zealanders struggling to make ends meet.

“TVNZ’s high spenders must be brought under control and if they threaten to leave the country and go to Australia, my advice is to let them go and to use the millions of dollars that would be saved to help improve health services,” said Mr Peters.

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