Mr LUGG - 1998-12-01
Last week, the Leader of the Opposition made serious allegations against him dating from when he was president of the CLP. These same allegations were repeated by the member for Nhulunbuy in the subsequent debate. Now the ALP has tabled a number of documents in support of its claims. Can the Chief Minister advise whether the Leader of the Opposition has made full disclosure in relation to these matters? Can the Chief Minister table documents that prove conclusively that the CLP had a separate contractual relationship with pollster Brian Sweeney and Associates and that relationship included a separate brief and an agreed payment, all pre-dating the results of the poll delivered on 15 July 1990?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, last week the opposition selectively tabled documents - their old trick, their usual trick. Once again, they have been caught out and caught out badly. The member for Nhulunbuy can scoff at that - there he sits, the Power of One - but he is notorious for it. One nub of the allegation was that there was a blurring of the lines between government and party. The other nub of the allegation …
Mr Bailey: A blurring of the lines!
Mr STONE: if the member for Wanguri would be quiet and afford me the courtesy of giving my answer - was that one Andrew Coward was tapped on the shoulder after the event by me. This was set out in the speech made by the member for Nhulunbuy in the debate. ‘Yep’, he says, that is the way it has been related to him. That tapping on the shoulder, had it occurred, would have been after the event, after 15 July, because that is the date that the poll was delivered. There is only one problem with all this. That is that the CLP was in a separate, paid-for contractual relationship with the pollsters in its own right dating from May, some months before July and the fraudulent claim that there had been a tap on the shoulder.
Mr Stirling: Table the documents!
Mr STONE: I intend to table the documents. But first up I will table the whole of the document that the Leader of the Opposition should have tabled. She tabled in Question Time a letter from Brian Sweeney and Associates to one Mark Textor. But what she didn’t table was the memorandum that was attached to it, which is a memorandum to me in my capacity as party president from Mark Textor, research consultant, working for the CLP. Not working for the Territory taxpayer or for the government, but working for the CLP. And it says:
I have finalised arrangements to engage Ron I Klein of the research firm Brian Sweeney and Associates to commence qualitative research into the NT political landscape. Sweeney’s brief follows. I would recommend that you become familiar with it to avoid confusion over the research objective.
The written interpretive report derived from the research will be delivered to the party by 15 July 1990. I would appreciate any party queries regarding this project being referred solely to me and that the second component not be discussed.
I table that and I will make a copy available to the Leader of the Opposition. When she sees it, I hope she will have the good grace to acknowledge the fact that she had that memorandum and she chose not to table it in this parliament. What that makes clear is that there was a separate arrangement, that the – yes, you ought to have a good look! You ought to have a real good look, because you’re the one who has the problem in all of this! You’re the one who took yourself off to Queensland at the taxpayers’ expense to sit at the North Cairns Yacht Club and swill green cans with your informant. Had the Leader of the Opposition tabled the whole of the document, it would have given it an entirely different meaning.
Members: Rubbish!
Mr STONE: Rubbish? You haven’t even read it.
Mr Stirling: I’ve seen enough.
Mr STONE: Oh, you’ve seen enough. You don’t think enough, that’s your problem.
The second document that I propose to table is one that I wrote to Mr Ron Klein, who was the person in charge of the Brian Sweeney polling. I did that in my capacity as president of the CLP.
Mr Stirling: Funny that all these documents come to you right now.
Mr STONE: You go back and have a good hard look at what I said. I’m making full disclosure here, something you lot wouldn’t know the meaning of. I know this is embarrassing for the Labor Party. I’m demonstrating that this tap-on-the-shoulder stuff was all a fiction and I’m demonstrating that the person who was running the show was Mark Textor and not Andrew Coward. Andrew Coward was working for government and Mark Textor was working for the party. This is what the letter says:
Dear Mr Klein,
I am pleased to offer your company a consultancy agreement with the Northern Territory Country Liberal Party to undertake qualitative research into community opinions about the performance of the Country Liberal Party and the Northern Territory political landscape. This project would be in direct accordance with your company’s letter dated 29 May 1990.A copy of this document is attached which sets out the aim, the process and the budget. The budget total cost of $3700 is agreed. [That was back in May.]
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I know you don’t want people to hear this. You ought to be embarrassed by this.
This offer is made on the basis that: you confirm in writing that the completed written interpretive report derived from the research will be delivered to the CLP by 15 July 1990; the research will be used by the CLP as it sees fit; all copyright will vest with the CLP upon payment for it; following payment by the CLP, no claims in respect of its use will be made by you or any parties involved in its production …
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: I ask to be heard in silence, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Members of the opposition.
Mr STONE:
… the party’s representative for supervision of this project is Mark Textor, research consultant, CLP secretariat, or such other representative as is notified to you. The approval by the nominated representative of the age structure of respondent study groups and questionnaires shall be obtained by your company.
If you accept this offer, please sign both this letter and the attached copy and return the original copy to Mr Textor and retain a copy for your records.
That was subsequently undertaken and Brian Sweeney and Associates ...
Ms Martin interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Fannie Bay.
Mr STONE: Be quiet and you might learn something
It was returned and it was signed. In other words, there was a contractual arrangement back in May, predating this mythical tap on the shoulder. To pick up an interjection from the member from Nhulunbuy, you go back and have a look at what I did have to say about this. I said that I have never briefed a pollster, and I stand by that. I certainly entered into a contractual relationship, but with all this talk about blurring the lines, when you have a clearly separate contractual relationship it puts paid to the nonsense that you came into this Chamber with last week.
The Labor Party has been caught out again. You did not tell the truth. You tabled a doctored document. You left out the front page - you did it deliberately - and once again you have been caught. I table a copy of the letter to Brian Sweeney and Associates, together with their acceptance of the contract, and I have made a copy available to the Leader of the Opposition.
Mr Stirling: interjecting.
Mr STONE: I tell you what, I wouldn’t let you prosecute traffic infringements.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, last week the opposition selectively tabled documents - their old trick, their usual trick. Once again, they have been caught out and caught out badly. The member for Nhulunbuy can scoff at that - there he sits, the Power of One - but he is notorious for it. One nub of the allegation was that there was a blurring of the lines between government and party. The other nub of the allegation …
Mr Bailey: A blurring of the lines!
Mr STONE: if the member for Wanguri would be quiet and afford me the courtesy of giving my answer - was that one Andrew Coward was tapped on the shoulder after the event by me. This was set out in the speech made by the member for Nhulunbuy in the debate. ‘Yep’, he says, that is the way it has been related to him. That tapping on the shoulder, had it occurred, would have been after the event, after 15 July, because that is the date that the poll was delivered. There is only one problem with all this. That is that the CLP was in a separate, paid-for contractual relationship with the pollsters in its own right dating from May, some months before July and the fraudulent claim that there had been a tap on the shoulder.
Mr Stirling: Table the documents!
Mr STONE: I intend to table the documents. But first up I will table the whole of the document that the Leader of the Opposition should have tabled. She tabled in Question Time a letter from Brian Sweeney and Associates to one Mark Textor. But what she didn’t table was the memorandum that was attached to it, which is a memorandum to me in my capacity as party president from Mark Textor, research consultant, working for the CLP. Not working for the Territory taxpayer or for the government, but working for the CLP. And it says:
I have finalised arrangements to engage Ron I Klein of the research firm Brian Sweeney and Associates to commence qualitative research into the NT political landscape. Sweeney’s brief follows. I would recommend that you become familiar with it to avoid confusion over the research objective.
The written interpretive report derived from the research will be delivered to the party by 15 July 1990. I would appreciate any party queries regarding this project being referred solely to me and that the second component not be discussed.
I table that and I will make a copy available to the Leader of the Opposition. When she sees it, I hope she will have the good grace to acknowledge the fact that she had that memorandum and she chose not to table it in this parliament. What that makes clear is that there was a separate arrangement, that the – yes, you ought to have a good look! You ought to have a real good look, because you’re the one who has the problem in all of this! You’re the one who took yourself off to Queensland at the taxpayers’ expense to sit at the North Cairns Yacht Club and swill green cans with your informant. Had the Leader of the Opposition tabled the whole of the document, it would have given it an entirely different meaning.
Members: Rubbish!
Mr STONE: Rubbish? You haven’t even read it.
Mr Stirling: I’ve seen enough.
Mr STONE: Oh, you’ve seen enough. You don’t think enough, that’s your problem.
The second document that I propose to table is one that I wrote to Mr Ron Klein, who was the person in charge of the Brian Sweeney polling. I did that in my capacity as president of the CLP.
Mr Stirling: Funny that all these documents come to you right now.
Mr STONE: You go back and have a good hard look at what I said. I’m making full disclosure here, something you lot wouldn’t know the meaning of. I know this is embarrassing for the Labor Party. I’m demonstrating that this tap-on-the-shoulder stuff was all a fiction and I’m demonstrating that the person who was running the show was Mark Textor and not Andrew Coward. Andrew Coward was working for government and Mark Textor was working for the party. This is what the letter says:
Dear Mr Klein,
I am pleased to offer your company a consultancy agreement with the Northern Territory Country Liberal Party to undertake qualitative research into community opinions about the performance of the Country Liberal Party and the Northern Territory political landscape. This project would be in direct accordance with your company’s letter dated 29 May 1990.A copy of this document is attached which sets out the aim, the process and the budget. The budget total cost of $3700 is agreed. [That was back in May.]
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I know you don’t want people to hear this. You ought to be embarrassed by this.
This offer is made on the basis that: you confirm in writing that the completed written interpretive report derived from the research will be delivered to the CLP by 15 July 1990; the research will be used by the CLP as it sees fit; all copyright will vest with the CLP upon payment for it; following payment by the CLP, no claims in respect of its use will be made by you or any parties involved in its production …
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: I ask to be heard in silence, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Members of the opposition.
Mr STONE:
… the party’s representative for supervision of this project is Mark Textor, research consultant, CLP secretariat, or such other representative as is notified to you. The approval by the nominated representative of the age structure of respondent study groups and questionnaires shall be obtained by your company.
If you accept this offer, please sign both this letter and the attached copy and return the original copy to Mr Textor and retain a copy for your records.
That was subsequently undertaken and Brian Sweeney and Associates ...
Ms Martin interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Fannie Bay.
Mr STONE: Be quiet and you might learn something
It was returned and it was signed. In other words, there was a contractual arrangement back in May, predating this mythical tap on the shoulder. To pick up an interjection from the member from Nhulunbuy, you go back and have a look at what I did have to say about this. I said that I have never briefed a pollster, and I stand by that. I certainly entered into a contractual relationship, but with all this talk about blurring the lines, when you have a clearly separate contractual relationship it puts paid to the nonsense that you came into this Chamber with last week.
The Labor Party has been caught out again. You did not tell the truth. You tabled a doctored document. You left out the front page - you did it deliberately - and once again you have been caught. I table a copy of the letter to Brian Sweeney and Associates, together with their acceptance of the contract, and I have made a copy available to the Leader of the Opposition.
Mr Stirling: interjecting.
Mr STONE: I tell you what, I wouldn’t let you prosecute traffic infringements.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016