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Taito Phillip Field's absence from parliament on Wednesday was no barrier to the opposition looking to hold someone responsible for his actions.
There has been hot debate about the former Labour MP's involvement with immigrants for two years now and following confirmation police want to lay charges against him, there was no let up.
The opposition claims the Labour Party was too slow dealing with Philip Field. National Party leader John Key says they stand vindicated for demanding further inquiries into Field's activities.
"Helen Clark knew that the Noel Ingram inquiry lacked sufficient teeth to get to the bottom of what went on...Yet what we have today is unprecedented action against a former minister in her government," says Key.
The opposition want to know how the government commissioned, half million dollar report failed to find any serious wrongdoing, Key saying the original inquiry into Field was lacking and that has now been proved by the police decision.
Prime Minister Helen Clark is fighting back.
"It was a damning report, the remaining issue was whether the behaviour was in the realm of the unethical, immoral and wrong, or whether it had gone over a line to illegality," she says.
Clark says it is important to remember that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.
But the motivation for the decision to prosecute alleged illegal behaviour is also being questioned. Act's Rodney Hide says the police seem happy to prosecute anyone who is out of favour with the Prime Minister.
"Some MPs, the police have exercised their discretion not to prosecute, and other MPs, they've exercised their discretion to prosecute and there's a pattern, if you're on Helen Clark's side you don't get prosecuted, everyone else does," Hide says.
Clark refutes that, saying she does not have it in her power to direct the police.
The possible prosecution is unlikely to have an impact on Field's political future in the short term.
Even if police do charge him, that won't prevent him continuing to take his seat in the house. Under parliament's rules, he only has to resign if he is found guilty of an offence that carries a prison term of two years or more.
So for now, he gets to stay in parliament on full pay.
