Tuesday, 21 February 2023

Member conduct

John PESUTTO (Hawthorn – Leader of the Opposition) (14:09): My question is to the Assistant Treasurer. The minister has now accepted that he had a conflict of interest. At this moment –

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! Members on my right will come to order. The Leader of the Opposition will start again.

John PESUTTO: The minister has now accepted that he had a conflict of interest.

Members interjecting.

John PESUTTO: Sorry, he has accepted, apologised, admitted to an error – what else hasn’t he done? The minister has accepted that he had a conflict of interest. Here it comes: at this moment, does the minister still own Commonwealth Bank shares?

Danny PEARSON (Essendon – Minister for Government Services, Assistant Treasurer, Minister for WorkSafe and the TAC, Minister for Consumer Affairs) (14:10): I reject the premise of the Leader of the Opposition’s question. What I have indicated is that this may have given rise to a perceived potential conflict of interest, and that is why the action has been taken. I have always complied with the standards of this place, and I know that the register of members interests is due to be provided at the end of this –

John Pesutto: On a point of order, Speaker, on relevance, the question was very simple and direct: does the minister still own Commonwealth Bank shares? Just a simple answer.

Mary-Anne Thomas: On the point of order, Speaker, there is no point of order. The minister was being entirely relevant to the question. He was answering your question. But let me say this: he rejected the premise of the question, and he is entitled to do that.

The SPEAKER: Order! I believe the minister addressed the question in his previous answers, but I ask the Minister for Government Services to come back to it.

Danny PEARSON: Thank you, Speaker. Again, my register has always been updated, and when the new register is required to be updated it will reflect my current holdings at the time.

John PESUTTO (Hawthorn – Leader of the Opposition) (14:12): When is the minister going to sell his Commonwealth Bank shares?

Danny PEARSON (Essendon – Minister for Government Services, Assistant Treasurer, Minister for WorkSafe and the TAC, Minister for Consumer Affairs) (14:12): I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. As I indicated in an earlier answer, I have spoken with the Premier, and I have indicated that I will be placing my shareholdings in a blind trust. As I indicated, I have commenced the process of appointing someone to establish and manage a blind trust, and this structure will mean I am not involved in decisions they would make on my holdings.

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of the Nationals is warned. I ask the Premier to come to order.