12. Foreign Affairs Minister—Appointments to Overseas PostsHon TODD McCLAY (National—Rotorua) to the Minister of Foreign AffairsForeign Affairs Minister—Appointments to Overseas Posts12. Hon TODD McCLAY (National—Rotorua) to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Does he stand by all his statements and actions?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Minister of Foreign Affairs): Yes.Hon Todd McClay: Does he stand by his statement made on Radio New Zealand on 6 August: I am full of support for career diplomats so they can be at the cutting edge of change into the future and not be passed over for politicians who have had a fair go in other theatres."?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I stand by those statements—in particular that we believed in promoting career diplomats but there would be in some circumstances a way—Hon Members: Ha ha!Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: It's all laid out when I made the speech. In rare exceptions we would see—[Interruption]SPEAKER: Order! The member will resume his seat. I've had just about enough of that. Does the member want to go on?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: In rare exceptions we would promote someone with a political background but I can't see any opposite me at the moment.Hon Todd McClay: Will he therefore confirm that he is not going to be appointing any current or former politician or political party member as High Commissioner in Australia or Ambassador to Spain?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: It is of the nature of foreign affairs—that member should remember with his passing knowledge of it—that those announcements are made in due course by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and its Minister and until that time he'll have to wait in suspense. What I can say of course though—oh no.Hon Todd McClay: Can he therefore confirm media speculation that he is considering appointing a member of the Labour-led Government as a head of mission to a New Zealand post overseas?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Can I just say to that member that while he and his colleagues deliberately seek to get the lexicon of MMP Government wrong they're not going to get an answer out of me. Behave and you'll get it.Hon Paula Bennett: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I note that the Minister has twice not answered questions because he believes that we are misinterpreting the Government. A Minister today used "Labour-led Government" in his answer and so actually I just can't see how he can use it as an excuse not to answer a question.SPEAKER: Well I can't help the member with that.Hon Gerry Brownlee: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. You accepted the supplementary from my colleague Mr McClay. Is it then acceptable for the Minister to simply say "You're not going to get an answer out of me."?SPEAKER: Well if the member deliberately baits the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the way that he did he'll get the reaction that's expected.Hon Gerry Brownlee: With all due respect—guidance for us if you wouldn't mind Mr Speaker. How is asking a direct question about a proposed appointment baiting the Minister of Foreign Affairs?SPEAKER: I think the member knows very well that the phrase that has been used at least half a dozen times today and probably a dozen times by his colleague is designed to bait the Minister of Foreign Affairs. I can see that everyone in the House can see that and if the member needs further explanation then I'm sure Mr McClay will explain it to him.Hon Ron Mark: Has the Minister got any concerns about Russian involvement in air disasters that might have been expressed?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Yes. I can say that on Tuesday two days ago a member of this House argued—from the National Party that is—that Russia was involved in the disappearance of flight MH370 in 2014. There has been no one in the whole wide world that has made that allegation—Hon Gerry Brownlee: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. No one from the National Party made any such assertion. There was most certainly a question that related to that. It was for the Minister of Foreign Affairs to answer but as we've heard today there's no answer coming from him.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Speaking to the point of order Mr Speaker.SPEAKER: No I'm going to—Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I've got the Hansard here.SPEAKER: Sorry I'm going to ask the Minister to start his answer again.Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: Yes well my answer is that I have had people raise concerns about Russian involvement with air disasters to the extent that on Tuesday a member of the National Party argued that Russia was involved in the disappearance of flight MH370. Here's the Hansard here—he said that. Now there is no one in this whole wide world save the National Party who has ever made that allegation.SPEAKER: Right that concludes oral questions.Hon Todd McClay: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.SPEAKER: I'm going to warn the member that it had better be a proper point of order because he's got that look on his face and I'm not quite sure that it will be.Hon Todd McClay: At the end of a Thursday I'm wondering what the consequences are if it isn't—I—SPEAKER: Well the member can lose questions from next week if he wants to.Hon Todd McClay: I'll save it for next week. Thank you."