Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has urged Stuart Nash to publicly apologise to National MP Katie Nimon for offensive comments, but stopped short of condemning NZ First deputy leader Shane Jones for his own derogatory language.

Luxon said Nash had a history of "pretty derogatory language towards women" and explicitly labelled his comments about Nimon as sexist, RNZ reported on 23 July 2026. The comments related to Nimon taking leave after having a baby, with Nash calling her "the laziest MP" he had come across, according to Stuff and The Post. Nimon received the offensive text message from Nash late at night, The Spinoff reported.

Nash has stated he is not apologising for his remarks, 1News reported. He was condemned across the political spectrum as sexist and misogynistic and has resigned his New Zealand First candidacy. Te Kira Lawrence has replaced him as the NZ First candidate for Napier.

Luxon said he had not given New Zealand First a heads-up before ruling Nash out of cabinet. The Prime Minister's handling of the two situations — Nash and Jones — drew a sharp distinction. Nash is not a member of the government; Jones is a Cabinet minister.

That distinction was made explicitly by National MP Chris Bishop. "Shane is a member of the Cabinet and a member of the government — Stuart Nash is not," Bishop said. He described Jones as having a "bombastic, loquacious style" that sometimes gets him into difficulty, but said "good riddance" of Nash's resignation. Bishop said he was "incensed" by Nash's comments because Nimon "is exactly who Parliament should be welcoming".

Jones made comments encouraging MPs to use "knee pads" when meeting with foreign leaders. He is the deputy leader of New Zealand First, the New Zealand Herald reported on 18 July. Bishop also referenced Jones's earlier "butter chicken tsunami" comment as offensive, saying Indian members of his community were offended by it.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis said she had spoken to Shane Jones about his comments but did not disclose what was said. Minister for Women Nicola Grigg said there was "absolutely no place" for people like Nash in Parliament.

Nimon herself responded to Nash's remarks by saying she had achieved more with National for Hawke's Bay in three years "with a baby" than Nash had in nine years.

The contrasting treatment of Nash and Jones lays bare the Coalition's operational constraints. Luxon can act unilaterally against Nash because Nash sits outside government. Jones, as a NZ First Cabinet minister, is protected by the Coalition agreement's machinery — any move against him would require negotiation with Winston Peters's party and risk destabilising the government itself. Luxon's decision not to give NZ First advance notice before ruling Nash out of cabinet signals he felt free to act without consultation on that front, precisely because Nash carried no ministerial warrant and no Coalition leverage.

The episode also revives questions about Jones's pattern of provocative language that have surfaced repeatedly during this term. The "butter chicken tsunami" remark and the "knee pads" comment span different contexts — one a cultural reference, the other a crude metaphor about diplomatic engagement — but both have drawn criticism from within the Coalition's own ranks. Bishop's willingness to name the offence caused to Indian community members is notable: it is unusual for a senior minister in a Coalition government to publicly call out a partner party's deputy leader in those terms.

For Opposition and crossbench MPs, the framing is straightforward. Nash's comments were sexist and he has paid the price — losing his candidacy and any prospect of a ministerial role. Jones's comments were derogatory, and he remains in Cabinet. That asymmetry is one the government will continue to field questions on in the House.