❓ Minister Ripper assures that the Gallop Government will not privatise Western Power and accuses the Leader of the Opposition of concealing a secret privatisation plan from when they were in government.
AnsweredQoN 75Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the Leader of the Opposition’s secret privatisation plan for Western Power. In view of recent developments, will the minister clarify the policy differences between the Government and the Opposition? Mr E.S. RIPPER
AnswerView source ↗
Mr Speaker - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Mr E.S. RIPPER replied: Mr Speaker - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Mr Speaker - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation.
Mr E.S. RIPPER replied: Mr Speaker - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Mr Speaker - Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The SPEAKER: Members! Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The SPEAKER: I call to order for the first time the Leader of the Opposition. Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Mr E.S. RIPPER: I am pleased to advise the House that the Gallop Government will not privatise all or part of Western Power; what is more, the Government’s position has remained consistent before and after the election. As for the Opposition, the plot thickens. Every day we winkle a little more from the Leader of the Opposition on his privatisation agenda. A fortnight ago the Leader of the Opposition denied that he had ever entertained privatising Western Power. When confronted with the secret report, “Path to Privatisation”, which was commissioned in 1998, he tried to suggest it was something that Western Power had done and had nothing to do with him. Why is the Leader of the Opposition so sheepish? Perhaps it is because the Court Government said this in the Legislative Council before the 1996 election - There are no plans to privatise Western Power or AlintaGas. Does that sound a bit familiar? As we have now revealed, within 15 months of that assurance, the then Minister for Energy in January 1998 asked Western Power to prepare for a one-third sale along the lines of the sale of Telstra. Of course, that was after the election, and the assurance was given before the election. The then Minister for Energy went on to sell AlintaGas, so his promise before the 1996 election was as worthless as his assurances today. The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The Government has then shown that there was a cover-up of the “Path to Privatisation” report by the Court Government. The first act of concealment was that it was given the bland title of capital structure when the Leader of the Opposition knew the report had the more controversial title, which was its real title, “Path to Privatisation”. The second act of concealment was when the report did not make it to the final list of documents tabled in the Parliament. Yesterday the Leader of the Opposition dug himself a deeper hole by admitting under pressure on Paul Murray’s program on 6PR that he did in fact discuss the matter with David Eiszele. After his own office had tried to discredit the minutes of the meeting as unreliable, he said - It never went any further than that . . . However, it went a lot further. I have new information on this matter. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
The SPEAKER: Members! Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
Mr E.S. RIPPER: I will quote from the confidential minutes of another meeting between the Leader of the Opposition and David Eiszele, the then Western Power managing director. That meeting was held on 20 February 1998, about a month after the first meeting. The document reads - Minister confirmed he is happy for Western Power to pursue work internally using consultants . . . When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation. He has been sprung again. He claimed he had nothing to do with the report and has admitted only one conversation that he claims went no further. We have more evidence to the contrary. Nothing that he says as he tries to wriggle his way out of that has any credibility. A couple of weeks ago the Leader of the Opposition described himself as a hands-on minister. His fingerprints are all over the secret privatisation plan.
When Macquarie Bank report is available, WP will prepare draft process and timetable for implementation.
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