Labor and Greens MLAs voted not to refer aspects of the Law Officers Legal Services Directions 2023 to a committee inquiry for consideration. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
There won’t be any committee investigation into whether a law which allows public servants to ask the Territory to cover their legal costs needs to be changed.
At least, not until some other matters are wrapped up first.
Opposition Leader Elizabeth Lee moved a motion calling for a committee inquiry to be held into whether there had been a breach of the Law Officers Legal Services Directions 2023 and whether the law needed to be changed to ensure it was being used “as intended”.
It comes after it was revealed the Territory is currently covering the legal costs of Education Directorate head Katy Haire as she pursues Supreme Court action to stop an ACT Integrity Commission (ACTIC) investigation into the procurement process surrounding the Campbell Primary School modernisation project (code name Operation Kingfisher).
Ms Lee’s motion also wanted a committee inquiry to consider: whether Education Minister Yvette Berry had misled the public when she said on 21 May that she had “no knowledge of the [Katy Haire] matter and the government has no knowledge of the matter”; how much Ms Haire’s legal fees are; and whether there’d been any interference into the ACTIC’s ability to undertake the Kingfisher investigation.
The Opposition Leader had attempted to have these questions answered previously, but it was ruled her motion shouldn’t refer to the current court proceedings.
She said she had now worded the motion in a way she felt would satisfy this requirement and also get the community answers.
“[These] serious questions [in my motion] do not fall within the subject matter that is either being investigated by the Integrity Commission or the subject matter of the court proceedings,” Ms Lee said.
“If this is a government that is true to ensuring that ACT taxpayers’ money is being spent appropriately, then [its MLAs] must support my motion.”
But the Labor and Greens ministers were not impressed.
Health Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith accused the Canberra Liberals of attempting to “shoehorn” a committee inquiry around both a current ACTIC inquiry and active Supreme Court action.
“[This] runs the risk of compromising one or both of these processes,” she said.
“Ms Lee can seek much of the information she seeks … through questions on notice or Question Time, which she has already used and can continue to pursue.”
Ms Stephen-Smith also pointed out standing committees were free to decide what matters they’d like to inquire into without needing something to be referred to them.
“This is a stunt that is all about smearing the Deputy Chief Minister [Yvette Berry] and indeed the Attorney-General [Shane Rattenbury].”
ACT Greens integrity spokesperson Andrew Braddock said while he agreed there were some “unanswered questions” surrounding this matter, to interfere with an inquiry now “could be prejudicial”.
Both parties want to at least wait until the ACTIC investigation has been completed, and court action resolved, before considering any further moves in this space.
Ms Lee’s motion was voted down.
The Canberra Liberals indeed have been using Question Time during the second June sitting week, and in previous sitting weeks, to try to get more answers.
In response to recent questions, Mr Rattenbury said the government was considering whether the Law Officers Legal Services Directions 2023 required amendments to make sure it wasn’t being used to “facilitate interference” into ACTIC investigations.
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