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Labour\u2019s police spokeswoman, Ginny Andersen, claims Police Minister Mark Mitchell was \u201cpaid to kill people\u201d and has asked him whether he kept a \u201ctally of how many you shot\u201d while providing private military services in Iraq.\xa0

Mitchell says Andersen\u2019s comments are \u201coutrageous\u201d and she should apologise. Andersen refused.\xa0

The pair appeared on\xa0Newstalk ZB\xa0this morning for their usual politics slot and they began discussing how some police stations contained mould and how it was an issue ignored by successive governments.\xa0

They then discussed Grant Robertson\u2019s retirement before host Mike Hosking asked both Andersen and Mitchell what they had done before entering politics.\xa0

Mitchell referenced his time working in hospitality, as a police officer and working overseas.\xa0

Police Minister Mark Mitchell believed Ginny Andersen's comments were outrageous. Photo / Mark Mitchell\xa0

Andersen then made a remark about the nature of work Mitchell had done overseas that led to her claim Mitchell had been \u201cpaid to kill people\u201d.\xa0

After leaving the police, Mitchell worked as a security contractor in Iraq, eventually setting up a private security company for the military and private interests, of which he was chief executive.\xa0

Mitchell said his work included tasks commissioned by the United Nations such as freeing up supplies at ports controlled by criminal gangs so they could reach communities.\xa0

He said he was proud of his efforts delivering aid in countries like Pakistan, Somalia, Afghanistan and Iraq.\xa0

Mitchell also noted how politicians on the left had repeatedly attacked him for his past.\xa0

\u201cIn my view, [the left] try to do these character assassinations, and that\u2019s what they\u2019re about.\u201d\xa0

Andersen continued, asking Mitchell: \u201cDid you keep a tally on how many [people] you shot.\u201d\xa0

She alleged Mitchell\u2019s company had earned $4 million a year through its work overseas.\xa0

Mitchell said the comments were outrageous and she should return and apologise.\xa0

\u201cIf that\u2019s alright with you, Mark, morally, and if that sits well with you, that\u2019s your choice.\u201d\xa0

She claimed Mitchell had profited from shooting people, saying: \u201cFree speech Mark, I\u2019m allowed to have a view.\u201d\xa0

Labour leader Chris Hipkins said he was aware of Andersen\u2019s comments, but had not yet heard the interview in full and wanted to speak to Andersen before making any comment.\xa0

In the past, Mitchell has defended the work he did in the Middle East after political opponents described him as a mercenary.\xa0

In 2017, he\xa0told the\xa0NZ Herald\xa0that label frustrated him.\xa0

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t change anything I\u2019ve done. I\u2019m ... quietly proud, I\u2019m not someone that shouts it from the rooftops \u2014 I\u2019m a Kiwi after all. But I\u2019m proud of the difference we made in people\u2019s lives in terms of their security and ability to get on with their lives.\u201d\xa0

He pointed to work he had done such as opening mass graves with scientists from The Hague gathering evidence for the war crimes trial of Saddam Hussein.\xa0

\u201cWhen you\u2019re opening mass graves and you\u2019re finding the remains of babies clinging to mums, it\u2019s a pretty clear reminder of the atrocities which were taking place. That was a very, very tough job for everyone involved. Instead of questioning why we were there, all it does is provide more resolve in terms of knowing there had to be changes made.\u201d\xa0

Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whang\u0101rei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.\xa0

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