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

There are some very specific questions there which I may need to seek confirmation of answers to, because I do not want to mislead the Senate in any way at all. Senator Wong, presumably, was also watching the Prime Minister’s press conference. He said there—and I am recollecting what he said in that press conference—that oral advice was sought by the Prime Minister’s office of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet prior to the Kirribilli function as to the appropriateness of the Prime Minister inviting delegates of the Liberal Party and business observers to Kirribilli on the basis of the Liberal Party paying the additional costs—that is, costs, over the fixed costs of running Kirribilli, of hosting that function. He said that the advice given to the Prime Minister’s office by PM&C was that it would be appropriate if it was not of itself a fundraising function and if the Liberal Party paid the additional costs of hosting that function at Kirribilli. That is as the Prime Minister reported it in his press conference. That is what I relay to the Senate in response to Senator Wong’s question. I will look again at Senator Wong’s question in the Hansard. If there is any further information that I should provide to the Senate in relation to her questions, I will do so at the earliest opportunity.