Broadcaster who called former governor-general a ‘fat Indian’ named NZ First candidate
(From left) Winston Peters, Michael Laws and Sir Anand Satyanand.
"...it’s like Anand discovered the buffet table at 20 and he’s never really left it," Michael Laws said in 2010.
New Zealand First on Friday announced broadcaster and former MP Michael Laws as its candidate for the Waitaki electorate.
Laws, who previously served in Parliament for both National and New Zealand First, was confirmed by the party as its Waitaki candidate for the November 2026 general election.
In Laws, NZ First has selected a candidate whose most infamous broadcasting controversy involved a racialised taunt against Sir Anand Satyanand, New Zealand’s first governor-general of Indian descent.
On his radio show in 2010, Laws called Sir Anand a “fat Indian” and compared him to Mr Creosote, the obese Monty Python character who explodes after eating too much food.
Laws said Sir Anand’s weight seemed “incongruous” on an Indian.
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“I mean, we don’t all expect Indians to be begging on the streets of New Delhi, but it’s like Anand discovered the buffet table at 20 and he’s never really left it,” Laws said at the time.
The remarks were condemned by then prime minister John Key.
“I find Michael Laws’ comments offensive because they’re deeply personal and they’re aimed at the governor general in a way that I don’t think is appropriate for that office,” Key said at the time.
Laws initially refused to apologise, but later issued a statement saying, “I apologise to the governor general for comments which were, upon reflection, uncharitable and inappropriate.”
Sir Anand was born and raised in Auckland and served as governor-general from 2006 to 2011.
The Laws controversy back in 2010 came during a week of intense scrutiny of anti-Indian remarks in New Zealand media.
Just days earlier, TVNZ host Paul Henry had resigned after provoking outrage over his comments about former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit.
Henry repeatedly laughed as he mispronounced her surname, which is pronounced closer to “Dixit” in English.
Indian officials described Henry’s remarks as “racist and bigoted”. India’s foreign ministry lodged a formal protest, and New Zealand’s government apologised.
Announcing Laws’ comeback candidacy on July 3, 2026, NZ First said he had spent more than four decades in Parliament, local government, broadcasting and public advocacy.
Born in Wairoa and raised in Whanganui, Laws graduated with First Class Honours in History from the University of Otago before completing a Master of Arts in Creative Writing at Victoria University.
The party said he had also been awarded a University Grants Committee Postgraduate Scholarship and was a New Zealand Universities debating champion.
Laws entered Parliament in 1990 as a National MP before later serving as a New Zealand First MP until 1996.
After leaving Parliament, he served as New Zealand First’s campaign director for the country’s first MMP general election in 1996.
He later built a career in broadcasting, publishing and journalism, becoming a popular talkback host and author of three books.
NZ First described him as an “independent and outspoken commentator”.
Laws was elected mayor of Whanganui in 2004 and re-elected in 2007. He also served three terms on the district health board.
Since relocating to Central Otago in 2013, Laws has represented the Dunstan constituency on the Otago Regional Council since 2016. NZ First said he was returned as the leading vote-getter in the 2025 local body elections.
“Laws will be an asset to the New Zealand First team bringing a wealth of experience, skills, and leadership to parliament,” NZ First said.
