❓ Question regarding the Attorney General's helicopter flight to a private function and whether it complied with the Ministerial Code of Conduct. The Premier defends the Attorney General, questioning the Leader of the Opposition's motives.
AnsweredQoN 557Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
ATTORNEY GENERAL — GIFTS AND TRAVEL —
HELICOPTER FLIGHT
557. Ms M.J. DAVIES to the Premier:
I refer to the Attorney General's
helicopter flight to a private function in Yallingup last December.
(1) If as
required under the Ministerial Code of Conduct the Attorney General had sought
permission for this offer of transport prior to accepting the offer, would the
Premier have approved it?
(2) If yes to (1),
why?
(3) If no to (1),
surely the Attorney General must be asked to resign.
Point of Order
Mr D.A. TEMPLEMAN : The question is hypothetical in its nature and
not a direct question seeking a factual answer.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : As a general rule, hypotheticals are not permitted, but I will
give the Leader of the Opposition a moment if she would like to perhaps
rephrase her question and ask a question on the same topic.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Ms M.J. DAVIES : I refer to
the Attorney General's helicopter flight to a private function in
Yallingup last December. Should the Attorney General have sought permission for
this offer of transport prior to accepting the offer and should it have been
approved by the Premier?
HELICOPTER FLIGHT
557. Ms M.J. DAVIES to the Premier:
I refer to the Attorney General's
helicopter flight to a private function in Yallingup last December.
(1) If as
required under the Ministerial Code of Conduct the Attorney General had sought
permission for this offer of transport prior to accepting the offer, would the
Premier have approved it?
(2) If yes to (1),
why?
(3) If no to (1),
surely the Attorney General must be asked to resign.
Point of Order
Mr D.A. TEMPLEMAN : The question is hypothetical in its nature and
not a direct question seeking a factual answer.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : As a general rule, hypotheticals are not permitted, but I will
give the Leader of the Opposition a moment if she would like to perhaps
rephrase her question and ask a question on the same topic.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Ms M.J. DAVIES : I refer to
the Attorney General's helicopter flight to a private function in
Yallingup last December. Should the Attorney General have sought permission for
this offer of transport prior to accepting the offer and should it have been
approved by the Premier?
AnswerView source ↗
Thank you for the question. The Attorney General has at all
times complied with the Ministerial Code of Conduct. Ministers are required to
comply with the Ministerial Code of Conduct and he has. If the Leader of the
Opposition has a look at the Ministerial Code of Conduct, it quite clearly
refers to gifts or hospitality given to ministers or their immediate families
by family members or personal friends in a genuinely personal capacity.
Now, as I understand it, if indeed this occurred, the
minister attended a birthday party. If he had been driven to the birthday
party, would it be an issue? If he had gone in a car with someone, would that
be an issue? Is that the point that the member is making? Has the member been
in a car with someone and been driven to a birthday party? Has she? If she has, has she breached the Ministerial
Code of Conduct? I mean, seriously, someone gets a lift to a birthday party and the Leader of the Opposition is trying to make out that it is somehow
inappropriate. Is it the case that the member is objecting because the Attorney
General's friend happened to have a position with Crown? Is that the
objection? If that is the objection, raise that as the objection. I do not know
what the objection is. If the objection is that someone went to a birthday
party with someone else, tell us exactly what the problem is.
times complied with the Ministerial Code of Conduct. Ministers are required to
comply with the Ministerial Code of Conduct and he has. If the Leader of the
Opposition has a look at the Ministerial Code of Conduct, it quite clearly
refers to gifts or hospitality given to ministers or their immediate families
by family members or personal friends in a genuinely personal capacity.
Now, as I understand it, if indeed this occurred, the
minister attended a birthday party. If he had been driven to the birthday
party, would it be an issue? If he had gone in a car with someone, would that
be an issue? Is that the point that the member is making? Has the member been
in a car with someone and been driven to a birthday party? Has she? If she has, has she breached the Ministerial
Code of Conduct? I mean, seriously, someone gets a lift to a birthday party and the Leader of the Opposition is trying to make out that it is somehow
inappropriate. Is it the case that the member is objecting because the Attorney
General's friend happened to have a position with Crown? Is that the
objection? If that is the objection, raise that as the objection. I do not know
what the objection is. If the objection is that someone went to a birthday
party with someone else, tell us exactly what the problem is.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.