Thursday, 5 February 2026

 James NEWBURY (Brighton) (14:13): My question is to the Premier. I refer to today’s report in the Australian that Victorian Labor has received at least $67,000 in donations from 23 businesses awarded more than $421 million in government contracts. Ministerial diaries reveal that Allan government ministers, including the Premier herself, have personally met on at least 50 occasions with these donors in the space of just two years. Will the Premier show leadership and refer these matters to the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission, or will the Premier simply dismiss today’s news as more misinformation?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:14): I am going to go to subject matter that the member for Brighton is always keen to make very clear to me that he is across: electoral matters and donation reform and legislation in this regard. I might use this opportunity to explain to the member for Brighton that political donations are a matter for political parties, and I want to make this absolutely clear because it might be different in the Liberal Party than it is in the Labor Party: they have no influence over government-awarded contracts. I want to make that absolutely clear for the benefit of the member for Brighton.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, on relevance, this question went to the multimillion-dollar government contracts the government awarded after these donations were made to the Labor Party – dodgy donations.

The SPEAKER: Order! Member for Brighton, I ask you to make your points of order succinctly.

Ben Carroll: On the point of order, Speaker, in the 30 seconds the Premier has been on her feet she has been entirely relevant. She was just pointing out that the Liberal Party also fall under the laws of the donations that were passed by the Parliament.

The SPEAKER: The Premier has only been on her feet for a short time. The Premier to continue.

Jacinta ALLAN: I also want to make it absolutely clear for the benefit of the member for Brighton that Victorian government procurement decisions are made independently through robust tender processes and procurement processes. I know they are surprised, because in government they did things very differently. Just ask the member for Bulleen.

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: The member for Bulleen can leave the chamber for an hour.

Matthew Guy interjected.

The SPEAKER: Make that an hour and a half.

Member for Bulleen withdrew from chamber.

Jacinta ALLAN: It is important to be absolutely clear on this point and not have these matters undermined by the misinformation that is being presented by the member for Brighton. Tender decisions are made and procurement decisions are made independently by the public service. There are probity advisers that sit over these decisions and strict rules. Under these strict rules, transparency is a point with these strict rules, which means the information that the member for Brighton is referring to is on the public record. Transparency is important when we are ensuring the integrity of probity processes. Transparency is also important when it comes to political donations, which is why when we reformed the donations regime in this state we required this level of transparency. That means the member for Brighton can now ask these questions, because this information is on the public record. To then conflate, as the member for Brighton has done, does a great disservice to him and does nothing to support the good, strong work that we have done as a Parliament to bring integrity and transparency into political donations and procurement decisions. We will continue to stand by the highest levels of integrity and standards when it comes to these decisions.

Bridget Vallence: On a point of order, Speaker, the Premier is debating the question. Will she refer it to IBAC?

The SPEAKER: The Premier is not debating the question. The Premier has concluded her answer.

 James NEWBURY (Brighton) (14:18): Aren’t these dodgy deals evidence that the Premier is presiding over a rotten and corrupt government?

Mary-Anne Thomas: On a point of order, Speaker, I am going to ask that you rule that question out of order on the basis that it did nothing other than offer argument and the opinion of the member for Brighton and had no basis in fact.

James Newbury: On the point of order, Speaker, there have been public reports in the paper today that suggest that hundreds of thousands –

The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?

James Newbury: It is not argument; it is public fact, as the Premier agreed to in her previous answer.

The SPEAKER: That is not a point of order.

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:19): I absolutely reject that false, wrong, misleading claim that the member for Brighton has made. He has no evidence and no basis of fact to make these sorts of claims. He would only make them in this place, wouldn’t he? Make those claims outside. The member has no evidence to back in that claim and assertion.

James Newbury: On a further point of order, Speaker, if it assists the Premier, I said it out the front of the building this morning.

The SPEAKER: That is not a point of order.

Jacinta ALLAN: It might disappoint the member for Brighton; I do not follow his Instagram account. We are focused on delivering for Victorians and what is important to Victorians, and this question says a lot more about the Victorian Liberal Party, their extremism, their division and their desire to divert Victorians’ attention from those facts.