Bill English Opposition Leader

17 October 2002

English urges Clark to come clean

National Party Leader Bill English says Helen Clark needs to come clean about the intelligence advice received ahead of the Bali bombing.

"She told us in the House just yesterday that she had received no advance warning of the potential for terrorist attacks in the area.

"Helen Clark needs to tell us whether New Zealand did in fact receive the same advice as Australia, the very same information that's prompted an admission from their Prime Minister John Howard," says Mr English.

He says the number one job of any Government is to protect its citizens.

"And on this front, the Prime Minister has failed miserably - Kiwis should have been entitled to the information our Government had on hand," says Mr English.

"If she still insists we didn't get the advice, we need to be asking whether our relationships with both Australia and the US are effective enough. "It now raises questions over whether the public can assume that the New Zealand Government is getting the intelligence it needs.

Mr English, who's travelling to China tomorrow, admits he's become a little more anxious about his trip in the wake of the Bali attack.

"People need to know that our Government has all the information it can get that will allow it to protect its citizens, and today we don't know if that's actually the case," says Mr English.

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