Cabinet Documents

Mr KNOLL (Schubert) (14:01): My question is to the Minister for Local Government. Given the minister's statements around increasing transparency within local government meetings, why does the minister support decreasing cabinet transparency for ICAC and the Auditor-General?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier) (14:02): We don't—

Mr Knoll: Do as we say, not as we do?

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert is warned.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: No, we have exactly the same policy in relation to cabinet secrecy as those opposite did when they were in government—in fact, no, we have altered it somewhat. We have actually released cabinet documents after 10 years. In fact, although I think, frankly, this was more due to accident than good management, there was a range of cabinet documents that emerged in the Gillman matter and, once some of them were put out, to make sense of them it became necessary for us to actually reveal many more documents. What we are trying to do is regularise the release of cabinet documents so that they are actually released as a consequence of a deliberate decision of government rather than just—

Mr Knoll: What about the Auditor-General?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: The same with the Auditor-General. There is no Auditor-General or ICAC anywhere around the nation that gets access to cabinet documents. There has been no government, at state or federal level, which has released cabinet documents in as generous a way as this government, and that's as it should be.

Mr Knoll: So, the Auditor-General was wrong when he made his comments?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: No.

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert is warned for the second and final time.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: The Auditor-General and the ICAC commissioner haven't criticised us. They have acknowledged that it is public interest immunity which attaches to cabinet documents for good reason, and we are entitled to assert it. In fact, it's not even something that we are entitled to waive. For instance, with all of that nefarious activity that occurred when those opposite were last in government, we would love to have a look at all that—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —but we are not permitted to—

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert is warned for his interjection about there not being an ICAC when his party was last in office, and the Minister for Health is warned. Premier.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —but we are not permitted to by reason of the public interest immunity. We have altered the set of arrangements that apply to all cabinet documents such that they are now available after 10 years, but the Auditor-General was surprised, frankly, that he was getting such routine access to cabinet documents and was unsurprised when we actually regularised the position which is no more or less than stating the status quo, which is that cabinet documents remain confidential.