Robert McClelland (Barton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Defence. When did the minister first find out that the draft report prepared in respect of the mismanaged repatriation of Private Kovco’s body had gone missing? When did the minister first direct that Private Kovco’s family should be informed? Is it the case that the minister had no intention of informing Private Kovco’s family about the missing document until it came to the attention of the media?

Brendan Nelson (Bradfield, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Barton for his question. As the House would be well aware, the Chief of the Defence Force, Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, appointed Brigadier Elizabeth Cosson, who was supported by Professor Donald Sheldon, to prepare a report into the circumstances of the unacceptable and erroneous repatriation of Private Kovco’s body to Australia. Late on Monday night last week, just after 10 o’clock, the Chief of the Defence Force phoned me to inform me that Brigadier Cosson had apparently lost the disk which contained the draft report into this unacceptable incident. I was advised that it had been thought to be lost either at the Qantas lounge in Melbourne or, alternatively, in a taxi.

Naturally, I asked the Chief of the Defence Force to do everything that could possibly be done to see that the disk was located. I understand, and I was advised, that that would also involve some discussion with the taxi company on the Tuesday. For obvious reasons, I would not inform the public or, indeed, the Kovco family until such time as I could be assured that the disk was not recoverable, because to do so would have caused an unacceptable and unnecessary degree of distress to the Kovco family. In relation to hypotheticals, they are not questions that I would answer.