A new list candidate with a track-record of making ‘outrageous and controversial comments’ and marked by a string of public controversies, is likely to enter Parliament as an MP.
Paul Henry, a well-known and most recognisable media personality, has announced his transition into politics after he was selected by the ACT party as its candidate in the forthcoming election. David Seymour has also confirmed this ‘high-profile’ candidate would receive an “electable” position on ACT’s list.
But is it a wise move of ACT to have selected a candidate whose career has been marked by a string of public controversies, and who has often been criticised for his ‘offensive, inflammatory’ and ‘racist’ remarks?
Electorate will surely remember the international diplomatic row sparked by Paul Henry in 2010 when he made ‘racist and derogatory remarks’ on air after deliberately mispronouncing and mocking the name of an Indian politician. Sheila Dikshit, the then Chief Minister of Delhi was overseeing the Commonwealth Games at that time.
He called her “the dip s*** woman”, and laughed as he said it was “so appropriate because she’s Indian, so she would be dick in s***”.
The Indian Government condemned the comments, and its foreign ministry summoned the New Zealand high commissioner to register a formal protest. New Zealand’s government apologised for the remarks, describing them as “culturally insensitive and vulgar”.
Several complaints made to Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) were upheld and TVNZ was asked to pay $3000 in costs. Subsequently, Henry resigned from TVNZ.
Then there was another back-to-back indiscretion in the same month. While interviewing Sir John Key on air, Henry questioned whether Governor-General Sir Anand Satyanand – who is of Fijian-Indian heritage, was a New Zealander.
“Are you gonna choose a New Zealander who looks and sounds like a New Zealander this time?” he asked.
The remarks sparked indignation and Paul Henry was suspended by TVNZ from the Breakfast show.
In 2009, Henry provocatively remarked about the facial hair of anti-nuclear campaigner and Greenpeace spokeswoman, Stephanie Mills during her appearance on Breakfast. He commented “how hard can it be to wax?” and comparing “the moustache” to “the elephant in the room”.
He also once described Scottish singer Susan Boyle as “retarded”.
Controversies, however, never seem to end for Henry who was also “sometimes tagged a right-wing ‘shock-jock’.”
He was back in headlines again late last year (2025). While hosting The Chase NZ, Paul Henry warned a contestant who was planning a visit to India, to be careful about what they eat because several of his friends had “exploded” at the Taj Mahal. The comments prompted a complaint to the BSA which was, however, dismissed.
This is not the maiden entry of Henry into politics. He contested as a National Party candidate in the 1999 Wairarapa election, but lost to Labour’s Georgina Beyer by 3033 votes.
But, according to Paul Henry, things had changed a lot in New Zealand between 1999 and 2026.
Speaking yesterday (Tuesday) after being announced as ACT list candidate, the 65-years-old former broadcaster said “In many ways when I stood last time there was more opportunity, why is it that people’s expectations in this country are so low? When I was growing up in this country we had ludicrous aspirations.”
ACT party has currently one Indian-origin MP, Parmjeet Parmar and is fielding three other Indian ethnicity candidates for the forthcoming elections – Malkiat Singh (Papakura); Manu Singh (Mangere) and Ash Parmar (Waikato).
It will be interesting to see the effect, if any, of Paul Henry’s selection by the party on their election results.
But is Paul Henry going to continue his provocative style to avoid controversies in future, or would he continue to hog headlines with his ‘shock-jock’ comments- only time will tell.
ACT has lost our vote, at least