Home›Questions on Notice›QoN 726

❓ A parliamentary question seeks to determine if the Minister for Police and Road Safety or their staff have mishandled Cabinet in Confidence (CiC) information by transmitting it via insecure channels since 17 March 2017. The Minister's answer avoids directly addressing the specific allegations, citing established practice and general adherence to guidelines.

AnsweredQoN 726Legislative Assembly

Asked

14 June 2017

Member

Mr Z.R.F. Kirkup

Portfolio

Police; Road Safety

QuestionView source ↗

(1) Is the Minister aware of 2017 Cabinet Handbook guidelines with respect to the handling of Cabinet in Confidence (CiC) information? (2) Since 17 March 2017 has the Minister or their staff transmitted CiC information via text message, iMessage or WhatsApp, and if yes: (a) what service was used and to whom was that information conveyed; (b) as per the Cabinet handbook was the information marked "Not to be Copied"; (c) can the Minister rule out that CiC information was not stored on a third party server; and (d) has the Minister sought approval for use of this service by the Cabinet Secretariat? (3) Since 17 March 2017 has the Minister or their staff transmitted CiC information via fax, and if yes: (a) to whom was that information conveyed; and (b) as per the Cabinet Handbook was the document destroyed after it's use?

AnswerView source ↗

Answered

15 August 2017

Responded by

Minister for Police; Road Safety

Response time

11 days

It is longstanding practice that the Department of the Premier and Cabinet does not disclose Cabinet in Confidence information. Ministers have been informed on the requirements of the Cabinet Handbook and their responsibilities concerning Cabinet in Confidence material and as per the Ministerial Code of Conduct they are expected to observe those requirements.

View on Parliament of WA