Legislative Council Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1) 52 1 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Question Time Burnside Council BURNSIDE COUNCIL The Hon. S.G. WADE Legislative Council BURNSIDE COUNCIL The Hon. S.G. WADE (14:30): I have a supplementary question arising from the answer. If the minister suggests that it is inappropriate for an investigation to proceed while court matters are proceeding, why was work going on up until 4 February and what was the work related to? The Hon. B.V. FINNIGAN Legislative Council Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for Gambling BURNSIDE COUNCIL The Hon. B.V. FINNIGAN (Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for Gambling) (14:30): What I said was that the government decided that, in light of the court action that was proceeding, it would be most appropriate to cease the investigation. I did not say that it was illegal in some way. The principal reason why it was appropriate for the government to suspend the work of Mr MacPherson was so that we can await to see what the outcome of the case will be and decide the best course of action following whatever decision the court makes. Obviously, the investigation was wide ranging— The Hon. S.G. Wade interjecting: The Hon. B.V. FINNIGAN Legislative Council The Hon. B.V. FINNIGAN: The honourable member is aware of the terms of reference. There are quite a number— The Hon. S.G. Wade interjecting: The President Legislative Council The PRESIDENT: Order! The Hon. B.V. FINNIGAN Legislative Council The Hon. B.V. FINNIGAN: —of matters that are part of the investigation; not all of them are subject to what the court case is about. What the government is doing is ensuring that we are able to make best use of what the investigation has done to date. The only way we can do that is to await the outcome of the court decision, or at least to ensure that there is some finality to what is happening in relation to the court case, and then the government will be in a better position to decide how to proceed.