MEDIA ATTACHMENT – Wednesday, 12 July 2006
For comment: Cath Hughes, Media Advisor, 0419 886 304
Tasmanian Compliance Corporation & Government ‘Agreement’
Timeline of Notable Events
The Tasmanian Greens have continued to reignite the debate over the contentious Tasmanian Compliance Corporation deal, since the matter burst into the public arena in early June this year, following an article in the Australian.
Despite repeated claims by Ministers that the TCC Agreement was a Memorandum of Understanding and could not be released due to commercial-in-confidence restrictions, the Attorney-General admitted under Budget Estimate questioning by Greens’ Nick McKim MHA that since sighting the Crown Law Advice he did not believe that commercial-in-confidence applies.
This virtually forced the government to table the Agreement when Parliament resumed the following week, where it transpired that in fact it was a Service Level Agreement as the Greens had always claimed.
Following the no confidence motions in the Deputy Premier on Wednesday 5th July, the Greens then raised in Question Time further embarrassing details regarding the provision of Crown Law advice to the Minister’s Office that the Minister ignored.
This ducking and weaving raises questions over the accuracy of the information given as part of the Premier’s and Deputy Premier’s attempts over recent weeks to wipe the slate clean over this dodgy deal.
The following timeline outlines the new issues for which the Premier and his Deputy must account.
(A complete timeline of this campaign can be obtained by contacting our office on (03) 6233 8300.)
DATE
/ SOURCE / EVENT(S)2006
Wednesday, 5 July 2006 / · Greens table a motion moving no confidence in the Deputy Premier Bryan Green
· Government brings the motion on for debate prior to question time, an unusual tactic as it then exposed the minister to further scrutiny over the TCC deal in the following Question Time (Parliamentary protocol is that questions are not directed to Ministers once a no confidence motion is tabled against them, until that matter has been voted upon).
· Greens Kim Booth MHA asked further questions in the post- No confidence motion debate Question Time which returned the heat on the Deputy Premier by exposing more conflicting statements regarding Crown Law Advice.
· The Greens had received reliable information that Crown Law or Solicitor General’s advice had been sought but ignored by Minister Green when he was preparing to sign the agreement, but that his response to this being put to him twice in Question Time was not to answer, whilst the Premier had acknowledged, in response to a question by Ms Putt, that Crown Law advice was sought and received by the Department but never given to the Minister.
Tuesday, 11 July 2006 / Hansard / · Greens MHA Kim Booth reignited the issue of the TCC deal as new information came to light regarding the exclusivity clause of the agreement that puts under question previous information from the Minister.
· Mr Booth asked the following question of the Deputy Premier:
With regard to the secret deal that you signed with John White's Tasmanian Compliance Corporation two days before the election and titled 'service level agreement', is it a fact that the deal was originally drafted by John White or his agent? Is it also a fact that during February this year, senior departmental staff advised that clause 9, granting exclusivity to the TCC, was unacceptable, and prepared a document for signing with this clause deleted? If this is the case, what date was your office informed that clause 9 was unacceptable?
Is it also a fact that after John White's personal intervention, you, or one of your advisers on your instructions, instructed the department to redraft a new service level agreement restoring clause 9? I remind you, Minister, that that is the one with the exclusivity in the $2.5 million payout. If this is the case, what date was that instruction given? Finally, can you also confirm that the service level agreement was not meant to see the light of day unless there was a change of government?
Wednesday, 12 July 2006 / Hansard / · Greens Opposition Leader Peg Putt MHA further pursued the Deputy Premier to actually come clean on the exclusivity clause of the TCC deal.
· Ms Putt asked the following question of the Deputy Premier:
Yesterday you failed to answer as to whether or not you or your office had insisted that a Clause 9, granting exclusivity to the TCC, be reinserted by your department into the Service Level Agreement which you then signed.
Is it a fact that you have now, having failed to tell Parliament, admitted on the radio this morning, two things:
Firstly, that Clause 9 did go back in at the behest of yourself when you answered a question on this, saying, “That’s my understanding now, as it appears.”
And secondly, that although you spent the last week saying you did not see key Crown Law advice, you now have admitted that you got that advice verbally from your advisor – that is, you did know the substance of the advice, but chose to proceed with Clause 9, despite being advised by your Department that it was unacceptable?
Will you now table all the advice on the TCC and the documented interactions between the TCC, your Department, Crown Law and your office?
· Greens MHA Kim Booth brings on for debate in parliament a Motion calling for the establishment of a Joint House Select Committee to inquire into details surrounding the agreement entered into by the Tasmanian Compliance Corporation and Minister Bryan Green on behalf of the government.
· The Motion gained the Liberals support but Labor used their numbers to defeat the motion at the vote.
For comment: Cath Hughes, Media Advisor, 0419 886 304 Page 3 of 3
www.tas.greens.org.au