A parliamentary question probes the authority under which the Department for Community Development contacted the new employer of a former employee, potentially in response to criticism of the Minister's stance on sex offenders. The Minister defends the department's action as a necessary measure to inform the employer of relevant circumstances.

AnsweredQoN 457Legislative Assembly
Asked
31 August 2005
Portfolio
Community Development

QuestionView source ↗

As a supplementary question, under what authority did the minister ring the new employer of the former employee of the Department for Community Development? Is this payback for public criticism that the minister’s stance on sex offenders is more talk than action? Ms S.M. McHALE

AnswerView source ↗

That supplementary question was the most garbled I have heard. However, the department rang the employer. This is a serious matter. It was felt incumbent upon the department to alert the employer and inform it of the circumstances of the case, and to leave it to the employer to decide whether action needed to be taken. If that had not happened, questions would have had to be asked.
Ms S.M. McHALE replied: That supplementary question was the most garbled I have heard. However, the department rang the employer. This is a serious matter. It was felt incumbent upon the department to alert the employer and inform it of the circumstances of the case, and to leave it to the employer to decide whether action needed to be taken. If that had not happened, questions would have had to be asked.
That supplementary question was the most garbled I have heard. However, the department rang the employer. This is a serious matter. It was felt incumbent upon the department to alert the employer and inform it of the circumstances of the case, and to leave it to the employer to decide whether action needed to be taken. If that had not happened, questions would have had to be asked.

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