Indian-origin Labour MP Priyanca Radhakrishnan has accused Immigration Minister Erica Stanford of allegedly reinforcing negative stereotypes about Indian migrants after Stanford described unsolicited emails from people in India as being “akin to spam” during a parliamentary exchange.
Radhakrishnan, who is Chennai born, said Stanford’s remarks were “careless at best and prejudiced at worst,” and criticised the minister for singling out one ethnicity while responding to a question in Parliament on 6 May.

Stanford was answering queries about her use of a personal Gmail account for official business when she attempted to downplay concerns by stating:
“I receive a lot of unsolicited emails like, for example, things from people in India asking for immigration advice, which I never respond to. I almost regard those as being akin to spam.”

The comment drew swift backlash. Radhakrishnan told The Indian Weekender that it was “unacceptable” for a minister to generalise people from one country and dismiss their correspondence.
“Comments like these serve to reinforce negative stereotypes against an entire community of people,” she said.
“Particularly given New Zealand’s important relationship with India.”

Stanford defended her remarks, saying Radhakrishnan had misunderstood her.
“I did not say it is automatically considered as spam,” she clarified.
“I said ‘I almost regard those as being akin to spam’.”
But Radhakrishnan, a former minister for ethnic communities, reiterated her stance in a social media post on 10 May, criticising Stanford’s tone and the decision to single out Indians.
“If you’re from India, don’t bother emailing her because it’s automatically considered spam,” she wrote.
“So much for the National government’s focus on strengthening the relationship between India and NZ.”
Stanford further clarified that emails to her personal account fall outside her ministerial responsibilities and are not responded to. She insisted official correspondence is handled appropriately through her parliamentary office.
Immigration lawyer Alastair McClymont weighed in, saying both Labour and National governments have historically made life difficult for Indian migrants.
“It’s a long-standing tradition for immigration ministers to denigrate Indian migrants,” he said.
“Minister Stanford’s glib comment reflects the general disdain both major political parties and INZ have for migrants from India.”
McClymont added that frontline immigration decisions are susceptible to unconscious bias, influenced by ministerial attitudes and operational practices at Immigration New Zealand.
The controversy comes at a time when Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has called for an “all-of-New Zealand” approach to strengthening ties with India. Critics argue comments like Stanford’s undermine that goal and risk alienating a key migrant community.
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