Alex Gallacher (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I too rise to take note of the answers given by senators Cormann and Birmingham to the questions of senators Wong and O'Neill. That contribution from Senator Fierravanti-Wells was bemusing, but it reminded me of the tweet from the doyen of the press gallery, Michelle Grattan, who, I think yesterday, said, 'When confronted by a question, answer a completely different one.' That is the oldest deployment of political tactics in the book, so well done, Senator Fierravanti-Wells. I'm not sure Minister Taylor would take a great deal of comfort from your less-than-robust defence of his invidious position.

I listened to Senator Birmingham, who said, 'To the best of my knowledge'. That's reminds me of a statement by the honourable North Queensland member Senator Katter, who, when asked about his wife's interests, said, 'To the best of my knowledge, I know nothing.' It is the evasive answer. When in trouble, try to move yourself away from the problem. There is a problem here and it's a discrete problem that arises in this chamber and in the other chamber because of the quite appropriate scrutiny of these declarations. They are important democratic declarations. People in the community need to know if there is a conflict or the potential for a conflict. If you have a financial interest in a decision-making portfolio and it affects your own interests, it's got to be declared. It is a simple principle right throughout democratic society for good governance and due diligence. Minister Taylor seems to attract this lack of appropriate declaration. There were allegations around involvement in water pricing and contracts and sales. Now we have a clear trail of evidence wanting to be tabled in the Senate. The government has said, 'No, do it through the appropriate way,' and I'm sure that is exactly what will happen.

I filled out a senator's declaration of interest, and it's quite specific. There is a handbook to tell you how to do it. Senator Birmingham said that only direct interests need to be mentioned. That's not what the instructions to members of parliament say. It is any beneficial interest whether held by yourself, your partner, your brother or through an investment in another trust. The public need to know that the ministerial standards are being upheld and that the appropriate standards for members of parliament, either in the House of Representatives or the Senate, are being upheld.

The period is on now. The parliament has restarted. In the Senate we have until 30 June to comply with those published registrable statements of interest. This minister has a hang-up from previous parliaments. It will be really instructive to see whether the new declaration actually improves his record keeping and makes it a bit easier for the manager of government business and for the leader of the Senate to actually defend him, because I didn't see any resounding defence of Minister Taylor: 'I think he's done the right thing. To the best of my knowledge, he's done the right thing.' Senator Fierravanti-Wells came in and spoke about something completely different, so she obviously has no confidence that he has done the right thing because she never went within a skerrick of addressing the matter before the chamber.

It is the most vitally important thing that should be complied with at the start of each parliament and be maintained right throughout the parliament. It should act in conjunction with the ministerial standards. If we go to the ministerial standards of conduct by those opposite, it is contended that former Minister Pyne, former Minister Bishop, former Minister Robb—the list goes on—have not exactly covered themselves in glory in honouring those high ministerial standards. They have left the parliament, gone into great jobs within a really quick time frame, which looks to be dubious in terms of the standards.

Those on the other side don't have a good record here. To have a serving minister have allegations about this is not only untidy, it's completely inappropriate. He should have the professionalism, the honesty and the transparency to properly disclose, in the 110 per cent way that's required by the Australian people, all of his registrable interests so as to avoid the possibility of these allegations of undue and improper interference in either the bureaucracy or the way legislation is enacted in this country.