SUSTAINABLE BUDGET COMMISSION

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY (Port Adelaide—Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Police, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Motor Sport, Minister Assisting the Premier with the Olympic Dam Expansion Project) (15:21): Clearly bereft of any questions, the opposition has realised that I am unassailable as a minister and therefore no longer wishes to pepper me with questions. The bruising that I give back is, clearly, too painful, but I accept that as a fact of life. It is a significant recognition of my time in question time.

I want to seriously respond to the question that was asked of the current treasurer on the matter of a suggested conflict of interest between Mr Bruce Carter, in his role as a member of the Sustainable Budget Commission, and the fact that a member of the team of Ferrier Hodgson was involved in a consultancy in respect of investigating who leaked that document. I can answer that question and, as the Treasurer said, it was before he was treasurer. My recollection may have one or two qualifications.

When this leak occurred, I asked the head of my Treasury department to put in place an appropriate investigative body that was consistent with government procedures and the probity that is involved in these exercises. From memory, it did involve both Treasury, I am pretty certain Department of the Premier and Cabinet (and I think it may have been Chris Eccles) and, certainly again from memory, somebody from the Crown in terms of a crown investigative officer. I had no involvement in that investigation, quite naturally.

From memory, all responsibilities were delegated; and the appointment of a person from Ferrier Hodgson, on my recollection, was based on the fact that the investigative team required a forensic accountant and it was the considered view of the senior public servant overseeing this process. From memory, again, without reference to me, and I may have been informed afterwards—obviously, I was informed afterwards—

Mr Venning: Why didn't he say this?

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: Because he was not the treasurer at the time and would have no historic memory of it. From memory, the advice is that the person involved is the best computer forensic accountant in Adelaide, and, again from memory, one used extensively by SAPOL for this very type of work. He had a set of specialist skills and the officers in charge of the process (whether it was the Crown or Treasury: I cannot recall) felt this was the right person. He was known to the crown investigative unit, and he was utilised. Mr Carter would have had no knowledge. Just because Mr Carter undertakes work for the government in a private capacity does not exclude his company, Ferrier's, from undertaking work on behalf of government. It is not something that should cause any concern whatsoever.

Mr Carter is an extremely hard-working, decent, honest citizen and professional, and any potential or perceived conflicts in any work that he has undertaken for the government have been properly administered by Mr Carter, by his firm and by the government.

I just want to put on the public record that, in the years that I have worked with Mr Carter—as we have with other business people, as previous governments have worked with business people—Mr Carter and the issue of conflict has been professionally managed. Just because he was on a government committee whose report was leaked does not and should not exclude him and his firm—considered the best by the public servants involved at arm's length from the ministry, from the body politic—from providing specialist services considered the best in Adelaide for forensically investigating computers and hard drives, etcetera. That would be the eminently appropriate thing to do.