New Zealand MPs fume in row about India's tobacco logo

Associate Health Minister Tuariki Delamere was taking political correctness to nonsensical extremes and making his country an international laughing stock, they charged.

An investigation launched by the health ministry to determine whether the visitors are in breach of the law by wearing the Wills company logo, a subsidary of a tobacco company, on their bats and uniforms has sparked fiery debate.

The centre-right ACT party has joined the centrist United Party in criticising Delamere for complaining about tobacco sponsorship.

Delamere, an anti-smoking campaigner, said Monday if the team was breaching the law he expected them to cover up the logos or remove them.

But United Party leader Peter Dunne criticised the law and said the government should review legislation banning tobacco sponsorship of sports teams.

``The whole thing is nonsense. It doesn't achieve it's objective of curtailing people smoking,'' he said on a Radio New Zealand broadcast.

``All it does is hold us up to ridicule ... I would have thought that Mr Delamere would have far more constructive things to do at this time than worry about this sort of rubbish.''

ACT's justice spokeswoman Patricia Schnauer said Delamere was sending confused signals to young people about smoking.

``Mr Delamere is recorded as being in favour of decriminalising marijuana,'' she said in a statement.

``At the same time he has objected to the Indian cricket team wearing the Wills logo. Mr Delamere's pinpricking approach, which means the Indian cricketers would have to wear a different uniform in New Zealand than anywhere else in the world, is surely designed to cause insult to a visiting sporting team. It takes political correctness to nonsensical extremes.''

New Zealand Cricket is arguing the logos on the Indian team's bats and uniforms belong to Wills Sports, which produces sports gear and is a subsidiary of the tobacco company.