Former Labour MP Taito Phillip Field has told a court he cannot be held responsible for the conclusions a Thai tiler and builder drew after a meeting in his electorate office to discuss their immigration cases.
Mr Field, who later became an independent MP, is on trial at the High Court in Auckland. He denies 35 charges of bribery, corruption and wrongdoing relating to claims that he gave immigration assistance in return for work on his properties.
He told the court on Monday that Thai tiler Sunan Siriwan and builder Keith Williams offered to work on his property in Samoa, but he did not employ them to work on any of his Samoan properties.
He said he covered Mr Williams' airfare with his air points, but this was not in exchange for work on his property.
Mr Field said he cannot recall any discussion about buying materials for either men to work on the property, and does not know what was going on in either man's mind about the situation.
