Mr BURKE - 2002-02-26
I remind the minister that the first question I asked him today was whether he, or anyone from his office, ever attempted to direct prison staff not to transfer Aboriginal prisoners from Darwin to Alice Springs, and only Asians or whites were to be transferred. I have further given evidence that representations have been made on this particular incident.
You, yourself, have now referred to that particular claim and, I assume, that particular incident. I give you another opportunity, minister, to explain clearly to this House what happened on that day, what directions were given, who gave them and what representations were made to you by senior Corrections officers or other staff.
Madam SPEAKER: I thought the minister had answered it before. But, minister, you might like to take the opportunity to reconfirm.
ANSWER
I did answer it, Madam Speaker, but it seems they want to play funny little games here and try to catch us slipping up on something. There were no instructions given by me and, as far as I am aware, by any of my departmental people talking to senior officers at the Correctional Services department or at the correctional centre.
There may be some sour grapes at the senior level there somewhere ...
Members interjecting.
Mr AH KIT: No, just thinking back there was ...
A member interjecting.
Mr AH KIT: Well, you can be quiet and allow Territorians to listen to my response. Your Leader of the Opposition asked for a response. There was approval given to a senior bureaucrat to go overseas to a conference, I think it was in Thailand, and to take his wife. The former minister of your CLP government gave the approval so I knocked that ill-founded exercise on the head.
Madam Speaker, I thought, rightly at the time, we cannot go into another exercise of having taxpayers’ dollars spent on another junket - if you go, you are going off your own bat. So, I do not have a problem with that sort of sour grapes situation.
I repeat: I gave no instructions to any of my staff, nor did I give any instructions to stop Aboriginal people being transferred to the Correctional Services centre in Alice Springs, none whatsoever. If staff, as you say, Leader of the Opposition, pulled up a plane and told senior Correctional staff that there were not to be any Aboriginal people loaded onto that plane, then trot out the evidence. Trot out the evidence because I gave no instructions of the sort. You are fishing here without any bait on your hook. As I said, you really deserve to be in opposition because you are grasping and clutching at straws.
You, yourself, have now referred to that particular claim and, I assume, that particular incident. I give you another opportunity, minister, to explain clearly to this House what happened on that day, what directions were given, who gave them and what representations were made to you by senior Corrections officers or other staff.
Madam SPEAKER: I thought the minister had answered it before. But, minister, you might like to take the opportunity to reconfirm.
ANSWER
I did answer it, Madam Speaker, but it seems they want to play funny little games here and try to catch us slipping up on something. There were no instructions given by me and, as far as I am aware, by any of my departmental people talking to senior officers at the Correctional Services department or at the correctional centre.
There may be some sour grapes at the senior level there somewhere ...
Members interjecting.
Mr AH KIT: No, just thinking back there was ...
A member interjecting.
Mr AH KIT: Well, you can be quiet and allow Territorians to listen to my response. Your Leader of the Opposition asked for a response. There was approval given to a senior bureaucrat to go overseas to a conference, I think it was in Thailand, and to take his wife. The former minister of your CLP government gave the approval so I knocked that ill-founded exercise on the head.
Madam Speaker, I thought, rightly at the time, we cannot go into another exercise of having taxpayers’ dollars spent on another junket - if you go, you are going off your own bat. So, I do not have a problem with that sort of sour grapes situation.
I repeat: I gave no instructions to any of my staff, nor did I give any instructions to stop Aboriginal people being transferred to the Correctional Services centre in Alice Springs, none whatsoever. If staff, as you say, Leader of the Opposition, pulled up a plane and told senior Correctional staff that there were not to be any Aboriginal people loaded onto that plane, then trot out the evidence. Trot out the evidence because I gave no instructions of the sort. You are fishing here without any bait on your hook. As I said, you really deserve to be in opposition because you are grasping and clutching at straws.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016