Ministerial Correspondence

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (14:33): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Assistant Minister to the Premier about ministerial correspondence.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: The 2013-14 ICAC annual report in relation to the use of private email to communicate official information states:

Such conduct might, at the least, amount to misconduct in public administration and be the subject of investigation and potential disciplinary action.

…The conduct therefore might also amount to an offence against section 17 of the SR Act. An offence against that section by a public officer while acting in his or her capacity as a public officer would amount to corruption in public administration under the ICAC Act.

My questions are:

1. If the assistant minister is confident that she, in her words, has 'done no wrong' in using her parliamentary email account to conduct ministerial business, why won't the assistant minister commit to turning over her parliamentary email server to the Director of State Records so that emails can be properly scrutinised for breaches of law or cybersecurity?

2. Has the assistant minister made any attempt to establish a ministerial email? If so, with whom and, if not, why not?

The Hon. J.S. LEE (14:34): I provided the answers yesterday, that I have not been given a government email just yet but the Department of the Premier and Cabinet is in the process of setting it up for me.