NORTHERN EXPOSURE
Minister’s lover hatched Launceston work plan
A SENIOR public servant caught in a scandal over his relationship with Primary Industries Minister Sarah Courtney, left, requested permission to work from an office closer to his lover, State Parliament has been told.
The Opposition questioned Premier Will Hodgman on Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment secretary John Whittington’s apparent request to work from Launceston two days a week.
Mr Hodgman would not confirm the request but said such a move would be consistent with his Government’s policy to decentralise staff from DPIPWE. Ms Courtney’s Bass electoral office is based in Launceston. She has stood aside from her ministry pending an investigation.
THE Government will not confirm whether the department head dating Bass Liberal MHA Sarah Courtney, who this week stepped down from the Primary Industries portfolio because of their relationship, recently asked to work out of her electorate two days a week.
The Opposition questioned Premier Will Hodgman about Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment secretary John Whittington’s apparent request to work from Launceston twice weekly in Parliament yesterday.
Mr Hodgman said he was unsure but said such a move would be in line with the Liberals’ decentralisation policy.
“The Government has commenced the implementation of our election policy to transfer 100 DPIPWE staff to the North and North-West,” Mr Hodgman said.
“It makes sense for senior leadership, including Dr Whit- tington, to spend time where staff are based.”
The relationship will be subject to a conflict of interest investigation and Mr Hodgman has sought advice on whether Dr Whittington should be investigated for a breach of the state service code of conduct and Ms Courtney the ministerial code of conduct.
Labor and the Greens yesterday said Tasmanians were still waiting for answers on the outcome of an audit into former mining minister Adam Brooks’s emails after he told Parliament he had used an email address associated with his mining services business, MSS, in 2016.
The audit was stalled because of Mr Brooks’s divorce and then suspended indefinitely.
Opposition deputy leader Michelle O’Byrne said it was important the conflict of interest investigation dated back to when Ms Courtney was appointed minister in March and urged swift action.
“The Parliament can’t have another minister sitting on the back bench for 2½ years because the investigation hasn’t been completed,” Ms O’Byrne said.
Greens leader Cassy O’Connor said the investigation should conclude within a week.
“There are legitimate questions here about decisions the minister made and whether she was acting on independent and impartial advice in giving those decisions,” Ms O’Connor said.
Mr Hodgman hit out at the opposition parties for their focus on Ms Courtney.
“[The conflict of interest investigation] should be allowed to continue independently without the prejudgement that we get from the judge, jury and executioners over there in the Opposition,” he said.