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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2022-05-04 Daily Xml
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Ombudsman Investigation, Member for Bragg

Mr TEAGUE (Heysen) (14:38): My question is to the Premier. Following the report of the Ombudsman, will the Premier withdraw the allegation he made in this house on 18 November last year that the then Deputy Premier and Attorney-General had a conflict of interest, which she did not declare, in relation to a port development on Kangaroo Island?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Energy and Mining) (14:38): The Fifty-Fourth Parliament, which was controlled by the former government, the members sitting opposite, found that the former Attorney-General had a conflict of interest. That vote goes unchanged. If members are unhappy with that, they should consider how it was that they lost that vote and who it was who caused them to lose that vote.

Mr TARZIA: Point of order, sir: the minister is reflecting upon a vote of the house.

The SPEAKER: I am reminded that of course it's not a vote of this session, but I will keep the point well in mind. I recognise the member's position as a former Speaker and the intelligence that he brings to the points of order raised.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: The house reflected on an independent report from a select committee. The select committee, which had a minority of Labor members on it—

An honourable member: A minority.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: There was a minority of Labor members. There was a majority of non-Labor members on that committee.

Mr Cowdrey: Who chaired it?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: If the non-Labor members on the committee wanted to select a Labor chair, well, who can blame them? I would ask members opposite to reflect on how a majority Liberal government could see their Deputy Premier and Attorney-General subjected to a select committee and then have their Premier—their Premier—strip her of her deputy premiership, strip her of her portfolios and now complain afterwards about the injustice of it all. If it is unfair and unjust, reinstate the member for Bragg. It's very simple.

Instead, what's happening is my phone is ringing hot with people saying, 'Can you believe what Vickie is doing? Can you believe what she's up to?' Well, have the courage to get up in the house and do it in front of everyone, instead of ringing us up behind her back and instead of ringing journalists behind her back. If there has been wrong done to the Attorney-General, only those who did wrong to her can reinstate her and that is members opposite—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: —starting with the member for Dunstan.

Mr COWDREY: Point of order.

The SPEAKER: There is a point of order. I will hear the point of order. I must give precedence to the point of order.

Mr COWDREY: If the minister is not finished, the question was directly to whether the Premier withdrew his assertion. Any reflection on the Liberal Party's make-up or otherwise has nothing to do with that question.

The SPEAKER: I understand the member for Colton is raising with me standing order 98, rules applying to answers. This is ground I'm sure that in the course of this parliament we will traverse well. The standing order does emphasise that the substance of the question must be responded to in the substance of the answer.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: The votes were taken in the previous parliament, in a parliament that the then opposition was in minority. That vote stands and the only people who can rectify what they perceive to be an injustice are not the government, because we are not going to make the member for Bragg Deputy Premier. We have a very good one right now. We are not going to make her Attorney-General. We have an excellent one now. If members opposite are unhappy with the outcome of the Fifty-Fourth Parliament's vote, that the member for Bragg was in contempt of the parliament for the most grievous offence of misleading this place, let's go through what that misleading was.

Mr TEAGUE: Point of order.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Mr Transparency doesn't want to hear about the misleading of parliament.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! I will hear the member for Heysen.

Mr TEAGUE: The question was a very straightforward question to the Premier. It asked the Premier: would he withdraw the allegation he made in this house on 18 November? The government is entitled to choose its spokesperson in response, but it must direct its response to the question.

The SPEAKER: Very well. The member for Heysen has provided submissions to me in relation to standing order 98. It's a standing order I have earlier emphasised to the minister. I will be listening carefully. Of course, it's a question that of itself may require some reflection on ancillary matters and some context might be introduced. I think we might have reached the point where some context has been introduced.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I suppose the point I am trying to make to the house is that it's a bit rich for those who aren't prepared to reflect on their own actions to call on us to undo a vote of the previous parliament. As I said earlier, the parliament has no power to remove a commission. We passed a motion of no confidence in the then Deputy Premier. That was unprecedented in the history of this parliament, in my understanding. The then one-term Premier, the member for Dunstan, refused to act on that and then ultimately did and, when he did, he did so because he felt there were reasons why the Deputy Premier should stand down as Deputy Premier.

Mr PISONI: Point of order.

The SPEAKER: There is a—

An honourable member interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Sir, I would ask the—

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Point of order, sir.

Mr Marshall interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Dunstan! I will hear the point of order from the member for Unley. The minister will be seated.

Mr PISONI: Thank you, sir. You have already advised the minister that there has been sufficient background and now we are waiting for the answer, sir. The question was: will the Premier, who was then the opposition leader, withdraw the comments he made about the then Deputy Premier?

The Hon. L.W.K. Bignell: Seriously, mate, are we there yet?

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Mawson! The member for Mawson is called to order. Thank you, member for Unley. I have to give precedence to the point of order that's been raised. Minister, we must now come to the question.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Before we do, sir, a point of order: the member for Dunstan accused me of misleading the parliament. I would ask him to withdraw and apologise.

The SPEAKER: Very well. Member for Dunstan.

Mr MARSHALL: The member for West Torrens has repeatedly asserted to the house that I sacked the member for Bragg from her role as the Deputy Premier. This is simply not correct and I ask the minister to withdraw that allegation. It's completely untrue.

The SPEAKER: Now we have duelling suggestions that matters be withdrawn. For the sake of convenience, because I am going to have to rule first in relation to the matter that has been raised by the Leader of Government Business, member for Dunstan, do you withdraw?

Mr MARSHALL: I have stated to the house the reasons why I am asking the minister to withdraw the statement: it's simply untrue.

The SPEAKER: I appreciate that, but I have to give precedence to the point of order that's been moved or, rather, raised with me first by the Leader of Government Business. I will come to your point of order second. The question first is whether you withdraw in relation to the matters raised by the Leader of Government Business.

Mr MARSHALL: I don't think I can based upon the reasons that I have outlined to you, sir. Unless you are asking me to, in which case I will, but for the reasons I have outlined the point that was made and asserted by the member for West Torrens is completely untrue, and he has repeated it now thrice in the parliament which you are presiding over.

The SPEAKER: Now we are engaging in debate and, of course, these are matters that to some extent invite debate. I think the easier thing to do here is to ask the Leader of Government Business whether he can foreshadow whether he will withdraw and, if he foreshadows that, then you might choose to withdraw.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: He does foreshadow that. Member for Dunstan, do you also withdraw?

Mr MARSHALL: As I said, if you are directing me to, then that's what I will do.

The SPEAKER: I understand that you are withdrawing, member for Dunstan. Very well. I understand you also raise a point of order with me as to whether the Leader of Government Business withdraws.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I will withdraw, sir, for the good order of the house.

The SPEAKER: Thank you.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Given that the former one-term Premier said 'thrice', it's the number of elections he has contested as leader and lost two of them. But anyway—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! There's a point of order. The member for Dunstan.

Mr MARSHALL: As I was saying—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! I will hear the member for Dunstan.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr MARSHALL: As I was saying, the minister made these allegations. He needs not only to withdraw but also to apologise to the house.

The SPEAKER: I am advised by the Clerk that it's up to me whether I insist on the apology. The matters have both been withdrawn. I think they are at rest unless they are raised again with me.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: So the former parliament's decision stands. Members voted with their conscience. The former Deputy Premier was found to have misled the parliament, was in contempt of the parliament and suspended by the parliament. Nothing changes that, unfortunately for the member for Bragg or members opposite. The only way to remedy this for members opposite is to reinstate her. Of course, they won't; they can't wait for her to leave.

The SPEAKER: Before I turn to the member for Newland, I might reflect briefly on the matter rightly raised with me by the member for Hartley in relation to reflections on proceedings. I draw the member for Hartley's attention to standing order 118:

Debates of the same session not to be referred to

A Member may not refer to a debate on a question or Bill of the same session unless that question or Bill is presently being discussed.

There follow some guidance notes. As well, however, the member for Hartley being learned as he is may also wish to refer to standing order 119, which doesn't reference the same session in the house.

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