The Minister of Immigration has issued an exemplary statement explaining why in a free society he can not like some people and their views, but not try to ban them from New Zealand.

He’s granted 10 day work visas to Molyneux and Southern, the two controversial Canadian speakers banned by the Mayor of Auckland from public meeting halls in “his” city.

The statement is also a great example of the Rule of Law in action:

a) it shows a Minister applying and working under the law;

b) it shows how the law protects unpopular views and the right of people to express them;

c) it protects the rights of people in New Zealand who:

• want to hear these speakers and make up their own minds whether they are repugnant;
• want to see and hear them unfiltered by the distortions of social media;
• want to question or challenge them in person, where others can see and hear, and where they can’t block the questioner;
• don’t want politicians to decide who and what they can hear.

c) it shows how the law protects the Minister from unfair and dangerous pressure to abuse power to exclude political speech that is unwelcome to the establishment.

But most clearly it shows the Mayor what he should be doing.