A 41-year-old man has been charged with assault for allegedly throwing muck over government minister Gerry Brownlee after the memorial service for the fifth anniversary of the deadly Christchurch quake.
Police confirmed the charge this afternoon after the Earthquake Recovery Minister had an ice cream container filled with what he described as "pretty mucky stuff" tipped over his head.
A man's been arrested after a brown substance was thrown at Gerry Brownlee today https://t.co/0oC2Z62FMZ pic.twitter.com/rclAoN4PiO
— Newshub (@NewshubNZ) February 22, 2016
Prime Minister John Key was at the memorial service but did not see the incident and was not immediately available for comment.
Labour leader Andrew Little said he was near Mr Brownlee at the time.
"I don't think it's ever acceptable to throw a sludgy mix over anybody, but this was a commemorative occasion and it isn't the time to take up whatever the issue was that the person was protesting about."
Mr Little said they were there in solidarity with the families who had lost loved ones and to reflect on the disaster in which 185 people were killed.
"I think it detracted from a solemn occasion, a fairly emotional service."
Mr Little said the substance looked like "a sludgy, stewy sort of mix."
The incident comes after another minister, Steven Joyce, had a novelty fake squeaky dildo thrown at him at Waitangi commemorations on February 5.
The woman who threw it has not been charged.
Mr Brownlee told Newstalk ZB the incident took him by surprise. He did not want to speculate on what was in the container, but it "didn't smell too good."
"It was just a guy who just walked up at the end of the memorial service and said: 'This is for you'."
- Newstalk ZB
