Louise Pratt (WA, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment, Climate Change and Water) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Attorney ­-General be required to provide to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee, by no later than noon on 7 April 2017, the following documents relating to the Bell Group liquidation and the Bell Act:

(a) correspondence between the Attorney-General and Ms O'Dwyer in March and April 2016;

(b) a letter from the former Solicitor-General, Mr Justin Gleeson, to the Attorney-General regarding the High Court proceedings in the Bell matter, dated 15 March 2016;

(c) the email chain between the offices of the Solicitor-General and Attorney-General entitled 'Bell - Commissioner of Taxation request for advice from the Solicitor-General - referral to Counsel Assisting the Solicitor-General [SEC=PROTECTED, DLM=Sensitive: Legal]', dated 6 and 7 March 2016; and

(d) the submission from the Attorney-General's Department to the Attorney-General's office on the question of intervention in the Bell matter, dated 28 January 2016.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The government opposes the motion. The motion calls for deliberative advice passing between the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General and between the Attorney-General and his department. To require the production of such documents would completely undermine any government's ability to obtain independent legal advice from a second law officer of the Commonwealth and to prejudice the provision of frank advice from public servants to their ministers. These are longstanding principles essential to the proper functioning of government.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that notice of motion No. 272, as moved by Senator Pratt, be agreed to.