Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says Labour won’t block defector Meka Whaitiri’s bid to make a statement in Parliament today after leaving her party of 10 years and siding with Te Pāti Māori.

And members of Labour’s Māori caucus, while still reeling from her sudden departure, say they will support her doing so, but object to the “grandstanding” nature of Te Pāti Māori’s plans to symbolically welcome her back to her “whakapapa”.

Whaitiri will return to Parliament today as an independent MP after her shock resignation from Labour last week. While she intends to run for Te Pāti Māori in this year’s election in the Ikaroa Rāwhiti electorate, which she held for Labour since 2013, she cannot officially join the party and must sit as an independent MP until the election.

Whaitiri will make a statement early this afternoon before taking questions from media in her first major public appearance since the announcement.

Whaitiri will then enter the debating chamber at Parliament as an independent MP ahead of Question Time, where there will be a bid to carry out a ceremony symbolising her new relationship with Te Pāti Māori and seek leave to make a personal statement.

Any MP will be able to object to Whaitiri’s bid to make a personal statement.

Hipkins said he would not be blocking her attempt to do so.

“Ultimately, I’m sort of a bit traditional in the sense that I believe if people want to make a personal statement to Parliament, generally, they should have the opportunity to do that.”

He said he was not worried about what she might have to say.

National MP and Shadow Leader of the House Michael Woodhouse said the “convention” was that personal statements were not blocked.

“Well, I’ve seen the media reports that say there’s going to be a personal explanation from the Honorable Meka Whaitiri. If she does that, I hope that includes the tabling of certain correspondence.

“The convention is that personal explanations are not objected to and I don’t expect that that will happen.”

The Green Party say they also won’t be objecting. Act has been approached for their position.

This morning Whaitiri gave her first major interview since her announcement last week, revealing to TVNZ’s Breakfast that she “didn’t feel heard” within Labour.

Asked why she had not even called her boss - Hipkins - she said she prioritised who needed to know and that she went to her “trusted sources”, including whānau.

She also said the timing was a factor in not telling the Prime Minister nor any of her colleagues, including the Māori caucus that had stood by her through her toughest moments in Parliament.

The Herald understands Whaitiri’s official announcement was planned for a later date but had to be brought forward after media inquiries.

Ultimately, she told Breakfast the decision to move to Te Pāti Māori was a deeply personal one.

“It’s always been a calling of mine. It’s been my calling to return to an unapologetically Māori party,” Whaitiri said.

Labour senior Māori minister Kelvin Davis said they had tried to meet with Whaitiri but had been turned down.

He said it was “disappointing” she had left the party without raising any issues with them.

On her plans to speak in the House, Davis said that was a decision for Te Pāti Māori but he felt it was just about “making a scene”.

Labour senior Māori minister Peeni Henare said he did not think it was fair for Whaitiri to say she was not listened to.

“There were no indications to me.

“Meka and I served as ministers together. In my initial response to the news, I said I was sad, because for 10 years Meka and I fought for all the issues that matter to our people.”

Henare said they had asked Whaitiri to meet with them to “clear the air” but had been rebuffed.

“There is a tikanga matter here that says ‘kia whakanoa, kia whakawātea’, but that was declined.”

Asked about Te Pāti Māori plans to “welcome” Whaitiri over to their side of the House, Henare said it was “grandstanding”.

“There are more important issues to our people.”

Co-chair of the Labour Māori caucus Willie Jackson said he still had not spoken with Whaitiri but their “door is open all of the time”. They had offered to hui with her but she had not responded.

He said he was surprised to hear Whaitiri’s comments she did not feel heard.

There was “no intention” to block Whaitiri’s bid to make a statement in the House, he said.

“From the Maori perspective, we won’t be opposed if she wants to take a point of order. That’s up to her.”

Jackson said they were continuing to seek candidates to replace Whaitiri.

“There are a number of candidates who have put their hands up. As we all know, that is a really strong Labour seat. [Meka] is formidable though.

“So it’s not a seat we’ll take for granted, but it’s a Labour Party seat, and we expect to win the seat.”