Robertson Grant: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeRobertson Grant: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 22 May 2014. Volume:699;Page:18251. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]5.GRANT ROBERTSON (Labour—Wellington Central) to thePrime Minister: Was a staff member from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet present at the briefing on Operation Debut held on 14 December 2011; if so was that same person present at his meeting with Simon Murdoch and Ian Fletcher on the 12th of December 2011?Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister for Economic Development) on behalf of thePrime Minister: I am advised that the answer to the first part of the question is no; it then follows that the answer to the second part of the question is also no.Grant Robertson: Is it correct that the Government paid the cost for Ian Fletcher to come to New Zealand for the meeting on 12 December?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: I do not have that particular piece of information to hand this afternoon.Grant Robertson: I seek the leave of the House to table a screenshot of a Queensland Department of State travel expense form which shows a $1060 contribution from the New Zealand Government to Ian Fletcher’s travel.Mr SPEAKER: Is this something that has been freely broadcast to all New Zealanders?Grant Robertson: He doesn’t know about it.Mr SPEAKER: Order! That is not the question I asked. Is this something that has been screened on public TV to all New Zealanders?Grant Robertson: It has.Mr SPEAKER: Then that information is freely available.Grant Robertson: In light of the fact that the New Zealand Government did pay $1060 to Ian Fletcher for him to come to New Zealand on 12 December why did the Prime Minister say yesterday that Ian Fletcher “happened to be in New Zealand” for the meeting?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: I appreciate Perry Mason’s efforts in this regard. What I can tell the member—Hon Tony Ryall: “CSI Karori”.Hon STEVEN JOYCE: —“CSI Karori”—is that the 12 December 2011 meeting occurred between the Prime Minister Mr Ferguson and Mr Murdoch the then Acting Director of theGovernment Communications Security Bureau (GCSB).Hon Annette King: You’re struggling.Hon STEVEN JOYCE: I am not struggling at all thank you very much. That information is well known.Grant Robertson: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. In Mr Joyce’s attempts to answer that question he did not address the question I asked which was about why the Prime Minister yesterday said—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member is making a reasonable point. There was too much noise throughout the question and the answer. I invite the member to ask the question again.Hon Tony Ryall: Have another go Grissom.Grant Robertson: We will come to you too.Mr SPEAKER: Order! Just ask the question.Grant Robertson: In light of the fact that the New Zealand Government did pay $1060 for Ian Fletcher to come to New Zealand on 12 December why did the Prime Minister say yesterday that Ian Fletcher “happened to be in New Zealand” for the meeting?Hon STEVEN JOYCE: Because he did happen to be in New Zealand for the meeting.Grant Robertson: How can any of the Prime Minister’s claims about Ian Fletcher’s appointment be taken with any credibility when he claimed in this House that his only role in appointing Ian Fletcher was to accept the recommendation of the State Services Commissioner when in fact he organised a meeting with Ian Fletcher 3 days after he approved the appointment panel for the GCSB job he personally called Ian Fletcher and told him to contact a member of the appointment panel and Ian Fletcher was the only person interviewed for the job? Is it not about time that he stopped telling lies to New Zealanders—Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! That question is out of order.Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! Every member has a right to raise a point of order and it will be heard in silence.Hon Trevor Mallard: My understanding of the precedent of the use of the word “liar” is that in the past it has always been with regard to statements in the House. There was not a suggestion that the statement that the Prime Minister made was one made in the House.Mr SPEAKER: Order! I need no more assistance. That sort of question will lead to disorder in this House and on that basis it was ruled out of—[Interruption] Order! If the member wants to add to his record of leaving the House by talking when I am talking to a point of order we will ensure that that happens.Grant Robertson: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! Again this is a point of order. It will be heard in silence.Grant Robertson: I draw your attention to the answers that Mr Joyce gave on behalf of the Prime Minister which deliberately avoided answering the question. We had to force him to answer another question. All of his answers were in fact out of order. They all began with an insult to me as a questioner. So if you are looking for where disorder starts in the House it starts with Mr Joyce—Mr SPEAKER: Order! In my opinion the Minister addressed every question apart from one. I gave the member the opportunity to then ask that question again to which to my satisfaction the Minister then addressed that question.Hon Trevor Mallard: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker.Mr SPEAKER: If it is a relitigation of this matter I will take that very seriously.Hon Trevor Mallard: While Grant Robertson made his point of order Mr Joyce interjected five times and was not reprimanded.Mr SPEAKER: Order! I called for silence throughout that point of order. If the Hon Steven Joyce did interject through that point of order then I now require him to leave the Chamber. I did not hear the interjection so I leave it for the member to confirm whether he did interject.Hon Steven Joyce withdrew from the Chamber.