Nick Minchin (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance and Administration) Share this | Hansard source

Regrettably, and with great respect, that question reveals the complete lack of any commercial capacity, knowledge or awareness on the part of the ALP. Most of these senators were not around, I guess, when the Labor Party sold Qantas, the Commonwealth Bank and Commonwealth Serum Laboratories, and therefore they were not part of the process of preparing prospectuses on those companies. Clearly the senators on the other side have no idea about the legal and corporate obligations on companies and shareholders to issue full risk disclosure. These requirements have become even more onerous in the last few years. So the company is required by law—and, as I said, there are 10 teams of lawyers all over these documents—to list all those risks no matter how theoretical or unlikely they may be. This of course is all in the interests of—