McClay ToddHon TODD McCLAY (National—Rotorua): Thank you Mr Speaker. Well what a three weeks this has been. Like a babushka doll from Russia every time the head comes off the story goes so very much deeper because of course the Government has made itself an international laughing stock over the last two days but this really is not a joke. While the rest of the world was condemning Russia over a nerve agent attack on one of our closest friends and allies on their own soil the United Kingdom our Foreign Minister was talking about a trade deal with Russia. And now while 26 countries and NATO have expelled Russian diplomats we're not because our Prime Minister has claimed she can't find any Russian spies. But of course a statement was put out. It wasn't a joint statement this time. I haven't been to the website to see whether a staff member made a mistake and it's been changed but the Rt Hon Winston Peters has said Salisbury attack—[New Zealand] Government to keep next steps under review". Well I must say to the "Five Eyes" countries to our close allies and friends in the United Kingdom they'll be relieved. They'll sleep easily tonight because Winston Peters has said we're keeping the next steps under review.So let's go back to the beginning of the three weeks and see exactly what's happened. On 13 March the Rt Hon Winston Peters issued a press statement: "[NZ] joins condemnation of nerve agent attack". He didn't call out Russia in there at all. There was no criticism of that at all. He merely said that New Zealand condemns the use of nerve agents anywhere and for the rest of that week in the newspapers on the television and on the radio he spoke more about a trade deal than he did actually that issue.On 16 March—just three days later on the Friday—a joint statement was released by the Prime Minister and the Rt Hon Winston Peters that had quotes from the Prime Minister condemning Russia for involvement in the use of these chemicals on UK soil. The quotations were only from the Prime Minister; they weren't from the Minister of Finance. If one was to go and—Hon Tim Macindoe: Foreign affairs.Hon TODD McCLAY: —sorry from the Minister of Foreign Affairs—check that statement on the website today the Government's website those quotations have been taken away and therefore the suggestion is that they are also attributable to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and when asked in the House on Thursday of last week why that was he said "a staff member made a mistake". Well I'm not sure that's the case but thank goodness on a website now there is criticism.Of course what the Minister of Foreign Affairs has not done verbally in this House or anywhere else is stand up and tell the New Zealand public who he thinks is behind that attack on British soil and he has an opportunity here in this House today to do so. The reason that's so very important is so many other countries around the world are taking this issue much more seriously than the New Zealand Government is. Twenty-six countries have expelled Russian diplomats including NATO on top of that. Of those 150 Russian diplomats 60 from the USA 23 from the UK seven from NATO and Mr Peters in the House said today "Well Australia has only expelled two and they're much larger than we are." Well in Sweden there was one; Romania there was one; Norway there was one; Macedonia there was one—the list goes on and on and on and on until it adds up to 150.So the real question for this Government is after three weeks of confusion after three weeks of covering and playing catch up what is their policy on Russia? What is the New Zealand Government's policy on Russia? Can they explain that to the New Zealand people? Can they explain it to this House because many of our friends many of our allies and very many New Zealanders just really don't know?Foreign affairs is a very important issue and when it comes to the lives of others it's extremely important. New Zealand has one of the best reputations of any country in the world when it comes to foreign policy matters. We used to have an independent foreign policy. It's for the Minister of Foreign Affairs to stand up and confirm we still do so."