On Tuesday night, she re-read almost word for word a speech given at the Self-contained Motor Vehicles Legislation bill’s second reading.
The bill is not Allan’s, but belongs to Tourism Minister Peeni Henare, who was not able to be in the House.
Allan was roped in to speak on the bill at the last minute and Labour whips gave her the wrong speech to read.
National MPs Joseph Mooney and Simeon Brown spotted the error and noted Allan’s speech referred to potential changes that would be made to the bill in the Committee of the Whole Stage, which had already been and gone.
Allan’s office and Labour’s whips have been approached for comment.
Shadow leader of the House Michael Woodhouse said the episode was “embarrassing” and “incompetent”.
“The minister read a speech talking about making amendments to the bill. She should have realised it was the wrong speech, the wrong reading."
It's not the first time MPs have read the wrong speech.
In 2010, an almost identical mix-up occurred when duty minister Jonathan Coleman gave the wrong speech on a tax bill on behalf of then Revenue Minister Peter Dunne.
The speech was two years old.
In 2020, the Government introduced and passed the wrong piece of legislation, creating a multibillion-dollar loan scheme it expected to announce a short while later.
