Ruth Webber (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Fair enough. I indicated to the committee secretariat at the time that I would not be able to attend what is indeed a regular meeting of the committee. In working out whether I could get there, I had a look through the agenda for the meeting. It talked about apologies, confirmation of minutes and the supplementary budget estimates, noting the committee was to consider the draft program. It attached the draft program and listed Telstra as one of the agencies to appear at 9 am on Monday, 30 October. Who was I to know, by not being available for the regular meeting, that the government was going to pull this stunt and try to have a deliberative meeting? Who was I to know? There was no indication in any of the agenda papers that the government had an issue with an agency that they still currently own fronting up and being accountable regarding how they spend taxpayers’ money and deliver on their universal service obligations and other issues that the minister comes in here and trumpets quite often.

Telstra was very clearly listed in the draft agenda as an agency that would be called. There was no indication in all of the meeting papers that the chair would try and ram through some other agenda—some other issue—in ensuring that Telstra will not appear before us. As I say, these meeting papers were delivered to my office somewhere between 11.30 am and 12 pm for a 1 pm meeting. I indicated to the secretariat at the time that I thought it highly unlikely that I could be there. I flicked through the agenda and it did seem that it would be the normal consensus arrangement that private meetings of committees have to go through if they do not seek leave of the Senate to meet. It did not in any way indicate that it would be a deliberative meeting where votes were to be taken. It did not in any way indicate that there would be controversy, that there would be something rammed through just before a division was called. Everyone in this place knew that there would be a division on the message back on the Trade Practices Act legislation some time in that hour. Everyone in this place knew that, and it was highly unusual—