Let he is who without sin ...

Phil Goff seems determined to nail the government to the wall over the appointment of the Walter Mitty-like Stephen Wilce to a senior role with Defence - the Herald reports:

Mr Goff said the Wilce case followed in the footsteps of former Maori Television boss John Davy and former Immigration head Mary Anne Thompson, who also made false claims about their past.

"We've seen too many cases of this, and that indicates a systemic problem and I think that systemic problem needs to be addressed," Mr Goff said today.

He said there must have also been slip-ups on the parts of the Defence Force, which employed him, and the SIS, which does background checks before high-level security clearance is granted.

It seems to us as though Phil Goff has just put his foot in it - again. It hasn't taken much research to discover that:

• John Davy was appointed as CEO of Maori Television in 2002 - under a Labour government
• Mary Anne Thompson was first appointed to a senior role in 1989 using her false qualification, again in 1998 (when National was the government), and appointed as the head of Immigration in 2004 - under a Labour government
• Stephen Wilce was appointed five years ago - under a Labour government. Depending on whether the appointment was made before or after the 2005 election, the Minister of Defence was either Mark Burton (1999-October 2005), or - drum-roll please - Phil Goff! And of course the SIS Minister throughout was Helen Clark.

Oh dear! Phil Goff has once again knocked the ball into his own net. Surely, the uprising is near ...