Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—Mr President, I would like to ask a question of you about ministers who have confused their answers in question time or given incorrect answers at question time and who then come in a day later to correct their errors and plead forgiveness. Do you have any power to make sure those answers, those clarifications, are actually tabled so that senators who are not in the chamber when the minister comes in are able to read them? I have tried to get from the minister’s office her apology, her correction of her confused answer yesterday, but her office just have not had the time to get back to me before question time. So I am just wondering whether you have any power, Mr President, to require ministers who are correcting answers to actually table them so we can read them today rather than waiting for the Hansard tomorrow.

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Macdonald, I will look carefully at your question but my initial reaction would be that it is the responsibility of ministers to answer the questions. It is also their responsibility if they wish to correct any answers that they may have made. I will look closely at your question and if I need to give any other response then I will do so at the earliest opportunity.