A National MP who was punched in the face for smoking a cigar at a rock concert has apologised and says in hindsight he would not have gone.
The party's new associate health spokesman Dr Jonathan Coleman accepted the invitation to watch Irish rock band U2 from a corporate box owned by British American Tobacco.
But the night turned nasty when Coleman allegedly blew cigar smoke at a woman who had complained about the smoke.
The woman then squirted water at his cigar and Coleman allegedly responded by showering her with abuse, which led to her brother-in-law landing a punch on Coleman's face.
But Coleman, a former GP, says he did not blow smoke at anyone.
"First I knew of a problem was when I was covered in water. I turned around and saw two people shouting at me. I stamped the cigar out. There were some words said on both sides and I was punched," says Coleman.
Coleman has apologised for the incident, but the question of whether MPs should accept hospitality from a tobacco company remains.
"I think in hindsight I would make some very different decisions about accepting that hospitality," says Coleman.
Coleman is not pushing for any charges, saying he has learnt a "very valuable lesson".
