Premier and Cabinet Department

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Leader of the Opposition) (15:26): Supplementary arising from the answer: at the meeting that the Treasurer has now admitted he attended, did the Premier ask to know who in Cabinet Office had previously worked for the former premier or former ministers under the last government?

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (Treasurer) (15:26): Let me just indicate it is not a question of, 'I have now admitted'; I indicated that about three weeks ago. I am not sure where the Leader of the Opposition was. Three weeks ago I was asked a question by one of the Labor members, and I indicated then, at that particular stage.

The only knowledge I have of the names of individuals was that I am advised that yesterday one of the Labor members of one of the committees to which I am unable to refer, I am advised, asked for the names of individuals, and I understand some of the individuals were named. I had no knowledge, I don't think, of anyone who worked in the Cabinet Office prior to coming to government. I mean, there might have been the odd person, but I had no knowledge.

I am advised that—and again I can't refer to transcripts that I don't have—as a result of the question, five individuals were named. I am now aware of those names and I have been able to do, as a result of those names, or my office has been able to do, some quick searching. Indeed, it is very intriguing, the Facebook posts of some of the individual members who've been named—very interesting.

I suspect, if there are intrepid members of the media listening anywhere—and I don't know whether there are, because I couldn't refer to them—but if there were any intrepid members of the media, now that the Labor members have actually had identified and opened the door, they might like to just have a look at the social media links. They might just like to have a look at the social media links of some of the people that the good members of the Labor Party had identified yesterday as having evidently, according to the evidence that I'm told was given yesterday, been parachuted directly out of—so I'm told—the Premier's office directly into the Cabinet Office, the engine room of the government.

If there are, as I said—and I can only repeat myself—any intrepid members of the media, they might like to do a social media search. They might like to make some inquiries as to the shape and nature and the background of some of the people that questions by the Labor Party identified—the Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Ms Scriven and others, who asked questions to identify by name the individual officers. Now the genie is out of the bottle. The genie is out of the bottle, Mr President. It's not something that we did in government; I understand the officers just answered the question. It will make for very interesting reading indeed, in relation to some of that information.