8. Question No. 8—DefenceHon MARK MITCHELL (National—Rodney) to the Minister of DefenceQuestion No. 8—DefenceHon MARK MITCHELL (National—Rodney): Has he seen the quote Does he not realise that he sent our brave New Zealand soldiers to Iraq on a fool's errand and that training the Iraqi Army to stand and fight is literally Mission: Impossible?" and does he agree with it?SPEAKER: Order! Order! Can the member read the question please? Read it again.8. Hon MARK MITCHELL (National—Rodney) to the Minister of Defence: Has he seen the quote "Does he not realise that he sent our brave New Zealand soldiers to Iraq on a fool's errand and the training the Iraqi Army to stand and fight is literally Mission: Impossible?"; if so does he agree with it?Hon RON MARK (Minister of Defence): Yes I recognise that quote.SPEAKER: No. The member will finish answering the question.Hon RON MARK: Yes I recognise that quote and on the information I had at the time I still stand by that statement.Hon Mark Mitchell: How does the Minister reconcile his statement on Morning Report today that there was never any attempt by the previous Government to work across parties when New Zealand First declined a briefing an invitation to visit troops in Iraq with Gerry Brownlee Andrew Little and myself in 2016?Hon RON MARK: I have never received an invitation from Mr Brownlee or from that member on any visit and in fact that member can enlighten people about the conversation that he and I had on the telephone where that member apologised for not inviting me.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Can I ask the Minister as to whether it's a fact that contrary to being asked with respect to consultation the troops were already there before the invitation was sent to the New Zealand First Party in the first place?SPEAKER: Order! That is not something the current Minister has responsibility for.Hon Mark Mitchell: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. There appears to be some confusion. The Minister stood up and said that he'd never personally received an invitation—and I was very clear about the fact that the invitation went to New Zealand First—and the Deputy Prime Minister then stood up and contradicted him and said that "We did receive an invitation." Which is correct?SPEAKER: Well is that a point of order?Hon Mark Mitchell: Yes.SPEAKER: You're not serious? Stand up and ask a supplementary if the member wants to.Hon Mark Mitchell: Why didn't the Minister consult with or brief either the New Zealand National Party or the ACT Party before a decision was made to deploy our New Zealand Defence Force men and women into theatres of war?Hon RON MARK: On numerous occasions I have taken National Party representatives with me—in fact I took Mr Simon O'Connor into Iraq and into Afghanistan. In those conversations that we had on that trip it became very apparent and very clear to me what the National Party's view was on the deployment. In fact one would have to be deaf dumb and blind not to know that the National Party supported a continuation of that deployment unless of course it's just now changed its mind.Hon Mark Mitchell: Has the Minister consulted with the ACT Party?Hon RON MARK: No I have not had consultation but I would say this to that member also—and I would say it to Mr Seymour—the way that we have operated my office is that we make the door wide open. In fact the member has been into my office for a briefing.David Seymour: I'll be right over.Hon RON MARK: We will always keep the door open and I am fully ready at any time—Mr Seymour—to give a full background briefing. Members of the National Party sat in on the bilateral conversations with the Prime Minister of Iraq. They sat in on the bilaterals with the Minister of Defence of Iraq and visited Afghanistan and sat in on the bilaterals with the NATO Ambassador to Afghanistan. A member of the National Party has participated at all levels of those conversations and has made it very clear to me that the National Party support it. To Mr Seymour: the door's open. I apologise for not getting round to you. I would have done that after the announcement.Hon Mark Mitchell: Mr Speaker can I just seek some guidance from you because—SPEAKER: No you can't. The member can ask a supplementary question or if he has a real point of order he can do it. But if he trifles with me again he'll be losing his supplementary.Hon Mark Mitchell: It is a point of order because—SPEAKER: Well the way the member does it is to stand up and say "Point of order."Hon Mark Mitchell: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. The point of order is simply this: the Minister is talking about taking other members away on trips. That's not the question. The question was around consultation with Opposition parties before decisions are made on deploying New Zealand Defence Force men and women.SPEAKER: Between the last two supplementaries that has been very clearly answered.Hon Mark Mitchell: Why hasn't he applied his own high standards to himself in terms of a cross-party consultation and consensus in an MMP environment?Hon RON MARK: Right at the outset of being sworn in as Minister I think I made it very very clear that I sought for the benefit of the men and women in uniform to gain as wide a cross-party consensus on defence matters as we possibly can. It is for that reason that we have gone out of our way to invite National Party representatives to attend briefings. It's for that reason that I have never refused a request from the Hon Paula Bennett. I think there are about two or three National Party members who've sought permission to go on to military bases and talk with Defence Force personnel unlike what happened to me when I was specifically blocked by the National Government at the time.SPEAKER: Order! Order! The member's actually not responsible for that as Minister.Hon Mark Mitchell: Did the Minister of Defence ever contact the previous Minister of Defence asking him for support to get access to military bases in the United States because he'd been blocked and the previous Minister of Defence assisted that member in getting access to those bases?SPEAKER: Order! There's no ministerial responsibility for discussions that were had before this Minister was Minister.Hon Gerry Brownlee: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. There is however a long tradition that matters that arise during question time from answers from Ministers may in fact lead to further supplementaries. Now the Hon Ron Mark has just made a completely ridiculous comment in the House that he cannot sustain and is simply not the truth. The question the Hon Mark Mitchell seeks to ask is an opportunity for the Hon Ron Mark to set the record right because he was clearly mistaken in his earlier outrageous answer.SPEAKER: Well the member is absolutely aware that the area that was being discussed is something that is outside the Hon Ron Mark's area of ministerial responsibility. If there is a view that the answer was in error if it was deliberately in error then I'm sure I will receive a letter on that matter and if it was a matter which was accidentally in error I'm sure that the member concerned will correct his answer.Hon RON MARK: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. Thank you and I acknowledge and I want to thank Mr Mitchell. It slipped my mind—SPEAKER: Order! Does the member want to make a personal explanation?Hon RON MARK: Yes.SPEAKER: Right. The Hon Ron Mark has sought leave to make a personal explanation. I expect it is to correct an answer.Hon RON MARK: Correct Mr Speaker.SPEAKER: Is there any objection? There appears to be none.Hon RON MARK: Thank you. I just wish to correct that answer and I thank the member for reminding me. That member when he was the Minister of Defence did assist me to visit the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base and Luke Air Force Base on a private visit just as I assisted him."