Susan McDonald (Queensland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Finance, Senator Gallagher. Minister, in the Australian newspaper on Saturday respected political commentator and author Paul Kelly wrote:

Gallagher denied misleading parliament but the facts told something different—while she had told Senate estimates "no one had any knowledge" of Higgins's pending revelations, she admitted in her statement that "I was provided with information in the days before the allegations were first reported."

It is obvious Gallagher misled the parliament.

Minister, how can Australians trust your government if you won't admit what everybody knows—that you did mislead the parliament—and why won't you do the right thing and simply correct the record?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I refer Senator McDonald to a statement that I made at the beginning of last week on this matter, relating to the allegation that I had misled the Senate. Specifically I will say that when it started at Senate estimates on 4 June, when the Minister for Defence, Senator Reynolds, said that she knew where this started and then went on to say, 'I was told by one of your senators two weeks before'—I took that to mean two weeks before the story broke publicly—'about what you were intending to do with the story in my office two weeks before'—that is, two weeks before the story broke publicly—I was shocked by that. I refer you to the statement that I gave that goes through this and then my statement that I became aware of the details of the allegations being made in the days leading up to it then becoming public, and that is the difference.

So I have been upfront and clear with the Senate. At the time in a private meeting—and perhaps all of this could have been avoided if that meeting wasn't private, but it was private; it was held outside the Senate estimates room—I did say to Senator Reynolds and Senator Ruston at the time that I had been aware of the allegations in the days leading up to them becoming public.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator McDonald, first supplementary?

Susan McDonald (Queensland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, in the Australian Financial Review newspaper last Friday respected senior press gallery journalist Phillip Coorey wrote:

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher, who was exposed by the text messages as misleading parliament two years ago …

Minister, how can Australians trust your government when you refuse to admit that you misled the parliament? Why won't you just admit you made a mistake and simply correct the record?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I refer you to my previous answer. I can't control what people write about this. There has been opinion piece after opinion piece after opinion piece written about the specific issues of the last two weeks and there have been hundreds of opinion pieces written about the matters that led to a lot of change in this workplace—that is, the brave and courageous representations by a young woman who used to work in this place and the changes that have come from them. There have been so many opinions written. Those opinions vary. I can't control that, but I can control the information I provide here to the Senate. I take my responsibilities to the Senate very seriously. There was no misleading from my point of view. I did not know what was going to be made public when Senator Reynolds accused me of knowing that. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator McDonald, a second supplementary?

Susan McDonald (Queensland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, on the ABC Insiders program on Sunday 12 June award-winning journalist Samantha Maiden said:

I think it's open and shut that she's misled parliament.

Senior gallery journalists David Crowe from the Sydney Morning Herald, Simon Benson from the Australianand James Morrow from the Daily Telegraph have all said that you misled parliament. Minister, why do so many of the country's most experienced political observers agree that you misled the parliament while you refuse to make that admission? Why won't you correct the record?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I refer you to my earlier answer. I cannot control what other people write about this. Maybe they don't understand it. None of them have spoken to me about it. Certainly, they haven't spoken to me about it in the last few weeks. They are writing opinion pieces or making opinion comments. That's up to them, and good luck to them. But I can say what I was responding to that night. What I was responding to that night was an allegation that, two weeks before the allegations that Ms Higgins made became public, I knew about them and I'd made a decision to be part of making them public. That is not correct. I never did that. That's outlined in my statement, and I was clear with Senator Reynolds and Senator Ruston two years ago that I was aware in the days leading up to them becoming public. (Time expired)