Now, what a position the Government has found itself in, on the issue of Kim Dotcom.

He could be deported back to Europe within a month - so that's before his extradition hearing which is still a few months away.

He didn't declare a dangerous driving conviction when he applied for residency – and so there’s an investigation underway by Immigration New Zealand, and it’s assessing whether or not he is liable for deportation.

David Fisher at the Herald broke this story late yesterday.

The final decision on whether to deport Kim Dotcom will be made by Michael Woodhouse, the Immigration Minister.

That's quite some decision.

Can you imagine the conversations going on in the National Party at the moment? They will go right to the top, to the PM's office because either way, the Government can't win on this.

If Kim Dotcom is deported, those who think the raid on Dotcom's mansion was illegal, those who believe he won't be extradited, those who accuse the Government of kowtowing to Hollywood…well, they will accuse the government of pulling a swifty to get rid of him…of using his residency application as an excuse to show him the door.

Yet Kim Dotcom has so many detractors in this country, that if he isn't deported, the Government will be accused of having one law for immigrants and another for Kim Dotcom.

The Government won't want to deport him. They will want him to go through the extradition process, they already assume his guilt, and they will want to see him face trail in the US, knowing this country played a part in that.

Hollywood will be happy. Wellington will consider it job done...and it won't be as embarrassing as admitting to the US that we screwed up his residency application and we've had to send him back to Europe. That would mean America would have to start the extradition process again, probably with Germany.

Kim Dotcom's offence? He drove at 149km an hour in a 50km area. He was convicted of dangerous driving. When he was asked in his residency application if he had any convictions, he said no. he later said he misunderstood the question.

So the immigration department is now considering whether he should be deported, and the minister will make that final decision.

So what does the government do? Deport him, or do what it can to keep him here so that justice is seen to be done on the issue of his extradition?