News release 28 November 2006
The Hollow Men author provides further email evidence to disprove denial
Don Brash told the news media yesterday that he had no record of receiving a crucial 24 May 2005 Exclusive Brethren email that set out the church’s plans to spend a million dollars of seven nationwide pamphlets (reproduced on page 332 of The Hollow Men). Brash said that the email from Brethren Ron Hickmott was “either total fiction” or that he did not personally receive it (Dominion Post 27 November 2006).
Nicky Hager today distributed a 24 May 2006 email from Dr Brash to his assistant Bryan Sinclair acknowledging that he had received the Hickmott email and saying that he had forwarded it to campaign manager Steven Joyce. A copy is attached. Ron Hickmott sent him the email at 2.15pm that day, the email was forwarded to Dr Brash’s work email at 4.13pm and Dr Brash acknowledged receiving the email at 6.49pm.
The assistant, Bryan Sinclair, wrote: “From the Brethren. I usually avoid tangling you up with this, but this is worth reading as it looks like $$ are involved here.” Dr Brash replied: “Yes, our friends from the Brethren bailed me up at breakfast this morning. I have forwarded this for reaction from Steven.”
“In other words, Dr Brash’s main claim about the book’s ‘lies and inaccuracies’ is not true. It is inconceivable that Dr Brash would forget a million dollar offer to help get National be elected. National Party contacts with the Brethren about its election campaign grew from that time.”
“These denials are like a sequel to the story in the book, which showed the National Party staff assessing how much the media knew about its Exclusive Brethren links and devising a succession of untruthful denials to try to wriggle out of responsibility. The story goes on.”