Shorten asks why PM was out of NBN loop
LABOR leader Bill Shorten has questioned how it was possible the Communications Minister Mitch Fifield knew about the referral of an NBN Co leak to the federal police, but did not tell Malcolm Turnbull.
The Opposition has been on the attack since the AFP raided the office of Labor frontbencher Senator Stephen Conroy and the homes of two political staffers last Thursday.
Police have been investigating the leak of internal NBN Co documents since last December, after documents leaked to media were reported as showing delays and cost overruns in the National Broadband Network’s roll-out.
Senator Fifield said in a statement on the weekend that NBN Co had told him about the referral to the AFP, but the decision was made by the governmentowned corporation’s management, not at the political level.
He said he “did not instruct nor request them to do so”, and he did not tell any other ministers or the Prime Minister, as a police investigation was by then under way.
Mr Turnbull said Sen Fifield had dealt with the issue “entirely appropriately”, but it was a “matter of judgment for him”.
“The important thing to bear in mind, the critical thing, is that the Australian Federal Police investigation, the decision to investigate, and the decision to take the steps yesterday were decisions taken independently by the Australian Federal Police as the commissioner has confirmed,” he said.
But Mr Shorten said that it was “inconceivable” that Sen Fifield did not pass on the information, and the failure to do so was “either gross incompetence” or “we’re not being told the truth”.
“In terms of who or what has seen what, I think all Australians should have seen these documents,” he said.
“I actually think it is scandalous that the government is going to such effort to stop these documents from the public domain.”
Mr Shorten last week suggested the Turnbull Government asked NBN Co to refer the matter to the police, but that he believed the police were acting independently.
AFP Commissioner Andrew Colvin said last week that there had been no political involvement.