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| Federal police to investigate AWU raid leak, George Brandis says – politics live | Federal police to investigate AWU raid leak, George Brandis says – politics live |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 12.17am BST | |
| 00:17 | |
| Meanwhile, back in Queensland, where everyone is on high alert the election will be called within days, Katter’s Australian Party have made their position clear. | |
| If it hold the balance of the power in the state (KAP has two Queensland MPs at this stage) state leader Robbie Katter, son of Bob, says the part will “immediately take the first step toward the establishment of North Queensland as a separate state”. | |
| That first step is forming a committee, “of independent experts with knowledge of the legal, economic and social factors to be considered”. | |
| And the border? The KAP says it should be at Rockhampton, with Rocky becoming part of North Queensland. | |
| 12.04am BST | |
| 00:04 | |
| The meeting returns, although Doug Cameron doesn’t immediately return to the room. | |
| George Brandis starts with a statement: | |
| “Senator Cameron made a very serious and untruthful reflection on me, he said that I had been colluding with the prime minister’s office in relation to this morning’s hearing, not withstanding he asked me whether I discussed this morning’s hearing with the prime minister or his office or whether my staff had done so, to which the answer was a simple and unequivocal no. I require, I ask him to require that that reflection be withdrawn, so when Senator Cameron returns, he does the appropriate thing and of course if he refuses to, then there are certain courses of action open to you, which I would ask you to follow.” | |
| Linda Reynolds says she will raise it with Cameron when he returns. | |
| 11.59pm BST | |
| 23:59 | |
| Doug Cameron asks George Brandis if he is aware why Michaelia Cash can’t be before the committee today. | |
| “I am aware that she has a long standing prior commitment,” Brandis says. | |
| Cameron: Could you provide details as to what that engagement is to the commitee? | |
| Brandis: I’ll take that on notice. | |
| Cameron: I have just got to say we have a minister in Senator Cash who has thrown one of her staff under the bus to protect her own, activity, her own position. | |
| He is interrupted by Linda Reynolds who asks if it is a question or a general statement. | |
| The hearing dissolves into yelling, as Reynolds attempts to quiet Cameron, who, I can’t hear entirely but says something about “ collusion with the prime minister’s office, coming in here and actually trying to cover up, this is a...” | |
| Reynolds cuts the microphones and the meeting goes private. | |
| 11.53pm BST | |
| 23:53 | |
| Doug Cameron has the floor in the committee and he is asking George Brandis whether steps have been taken to secure the computer and equipment of the ‘media director of the Fair Work Ombudsman’. | |
| “I personally haven’t,” Brandis says. | |
| “...I don’t know the answer to that question, Senator Cameron, but the matter is the subject of a current investigation.” | |
| Cameron asks if Brandis has attended a briefing from the prime minister’s office on this issue. | |
| Brandis says he has not. And that none of his staff have, with two succinct “no”s to each question. | |
| But when it gets to whether any of Michaelia Cash has, he refers to the public interest immunity convention. | |
| “The chair has ruled that this matter will not be dealt with until after the morning tea adjournment,” Brandis says. | |
| That will be after the redacted letter will have been tabled, the one which will lay out all of the issues Brandis says he can’t talk about because of public interest immunity. | |
| 11.43pm BST | 11.43pm BST |
| 23:43 | 23:43 |
| Nick Xenophon is on the committee, asking questions of the asbestos safety and eradication agency. Today is his last chance to ask these questions. Even if the high court rules he is safe, he is resigning to run in the South Australian state election. | Nick Xenophon is on the committee, asking questions of the asbestos safety and eradication agency. Today is his last chance to ask these questions. Even if the high court rules he is safe, he is resigning to run in the South Australian state election. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 11.44pm BST | at 11.44pm BST |
| 11.38pm BST | 11.38pm BST |
| 23:38 | 23:38 |
| The committee has returned. | The committee has returned. |
| Linda Reynolds says it is important for the committee to know what issues George Brandis will be claiming public interest immunity on. Brandis’s office are preparing that letter as we speak. | Linda Reynolds says it is important for the committee to know what issues George Brandis will be claiming public interest immunity on. Brandis’s office are preparing that letter as we speak. |
| But the one which will be tabled publicly, will be redacted. | But the one which will be tabled publicly, will be redacted. |
| 11.35pm BST | 11.35pm BST |
| 23:35 | 23:35 |
| While we wait on the committee to reconvene, I’ll remind you that Scott Morrison is due to meet with the state and territory treasurers today. | While we wait on the committee to reconvene, I’ll remind you that Scott Morrison is due to meet with the state and territory treasurers today. |
| The Australian had a very interesting story ahead of this. | The Australian had a very interesting story ahead of this. |
| 11.29pm BST | 11.29pm BST |
| 23:29 | 23:29 |
| In other news, Malcolm Turnbull was spotted out and about for his usual morning walk by Nine News this morning, leading to this exchange: | In other news, Malcolm Turnbull was spotted out and about for his usual morning walk by Nine News this morning, leading to this exchange: |
| Nine: Morning, prime minister – big day today? | Nine: Morning, prime minister – big day today? |
| Turnbull: It’s always a beautiful day in Canberra. | |
| Nine: Will you still have a deputy PM this afternoon? | Nine: Will you still have a deputy PM this afternoon? |
| Turnbull: We look forward to the high court’s decision. | |
| That’s a slight walkback from Turnbull’s declaration in August that Joyce was “qualified to sit in the house and the high court will so hold”. | |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 11.49pm BST | |
| 11.25pm BST | 11.25pm BST |
| 23:25 | 23:25 |
| AFP to investigate AWU raid leak | AFP to investigate AWU raid leak |
| Michaelia Cash had “longstanding” electorate business in Western Australia and so is not before the estimates hearing looking into the Registered Organisations Commission today. | Michaelia Cash had “longstanding” electorate business in Western Australia and so is not before the estimates hearing looking into the Registered Organisations Commission today. |
| But George Brandis is. | But George Brandis is. |
| And he opens by announcing the Australian federal police have opened an investigation into the leak to the media of the raids of the AWU offices. | And he opens by announcing the Australian federal police have opened an investigation into the leak to the media of the raids of the AWU offices. |
| He says given the investigation, questions over the leak – with a lot of this morning’s hearing, at least according to Labor members of the committee – meant to focus on who was the “media source” who alerted Cash’s staffer the raids were coming – would be inappropriate. As we already know, Cash’s staffer, David De Garis, alerted some media outlets. He has resigned. | He says given the investigation, questions over the leak – with a lot of this morning’s hearing, at least according to Labor members of the committee – meant to focus on who was the “media source” who alerted Cash’s staffer the raids were coming – would be inappropriate. As we already know, Cash’s staffer, David De Garis, alerted some media outlets. He has resigned. |
| The minister denied five times in an estimates hearing on Wednesday that her office had anything to do with the leak. After the publication of a BuzzFeed article by Alice Workman, which confirmed journalists had been told about the raids by Cash’s office, Cash “corrected the record”. | The minister denied five times in an estimates hearing on Wednesday that her office had anything to do with the leak. After the publication of a BuzzFeed article by Alice Workman, which confirmed journalists had been told about the raids by Cash’s office, Cash “corrected the record”. |
| Yesterday Cash faced a further two hours of questioning by the Senate committee, but didn’t reveal much more than she had on Wednesday evening, other than she had asked the ROC to consider referring the matter to the AFP. Today, Brandis said the ROC had decided to do just that, and the AFP had taken on the investigation. | Yesterday Cash faced a further two hours of questioning by the Senate committee, but didn’t reveal much more than she had on Wednesday evening, other than she had asked the ROC to consider referring the matter to the AFP. Today, Brandis said the ROC had decided to do just that, and the AFP had taken on the investigation. |
| He says that would make it inappropriate for any further questions to be asked about the issue, which would gag Labor from integrating ROC officials over where the leak could have originated from. | He says that would make it inappropriate for any further questions to be asked about the issue, which would gag Labor from integrating ROC officials over where the leak could have originated from. |
| Labor has protested that, with Doug Cameron pointing out that the matter is not before the court, and the AFP does not direct the Senate. Brandis suggested public interest immunity may prevent anyone from asking questions, and the chair, Linda Reynolds, is now looking at whether prejudicing an investigation (which is part of public interest immunity) will prevent questions from being asked. | Labor has protested that, with Doug Cameron pointing out that the matter is not before the court, and the AFP does not direct the Senate. Brandis suggested public interest immunity may prevent anyone from asking questions, and the chair, Linda Reynolds, is now looking at whether prejudicing an investigation (which is part of public interest immunity) will prevent questions from being asked. |
| The committee is on break as it discusses the issue. | The committee is on break as it discusses the issue. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 11.41pm BST | at 11.41pm BST |
| 11.12pm BST | 11.12pm BST |
| 23:12 | 23:12 |
| Good morning and welcome to a special edition of politics live | Good morning and welcome to a special edition of politics live |
| It’s Friday on a sitting week and usually we would be quietly twitching in a corner somewhere while madly working out what happened, what didn’t and what it all means. | It’s Friday on a sitting week and usually we would be quietly twitching in a corner somewhere while madly working out what happened, what didn’t and what it all means. |
| But it’s not just any Friday – it’s high court Friday, when the high court will hand down its judgment on the seven MPs – Barnaby Joyce, Matt Canavan, Fiona Nash, Larissa Waters, Scott Ludlam, Nick Xenophon and Malcolm Roberts. | But it’s not just any Friday – it’s high court Friday, when the high court will hand down its judgment on the seven MPs – Barnaby Joyce, Matt Canavan, Fiona Nash, Larissa Waters, Scott Ludlam, Nick Xenophon and Malcolm Roberts. |
| It’s Joyce who has captured most of the government’s attention. He’s the only lower house MP (in this round – David Gillespie is also before the high court on a separate section 44 matter) and if the high court rules him ineligible, we are headed to a byelection in New England. | It’s Joyce who has captured most of the government’s attention. He’s the only lower house MP (in this round – David Gillespie is also before the high court on a separate section 44 matter) and if the high court rules him ineligible, we are headed to a byelection in New England. |
| But before we get to that, there is another estimates hearing involving the AWU raid saga, and the federal court will give further directions on what can happen to the documents seized by the Australian federal police, at the direction of the Registered Organisations Commission, after a referral from Michaelia Cash over the disclosure of donations by the AWU while it was helmed by Bill Shorten. | But before we get to that, there is another estimates hearing involving the AWU raid saga, and the federal court will give further directions on what can happen to the documents seized by the Australian federal police, at the direction of the Registered Organisations Commission, after a referral from Michaelia Cash over the disclosure of donations by the AWU while it was helmed by Bill Shorten. |
| So let’s get started. | So let’s get started. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 11.29pm BST | at 11.29pm BST |