Wednesday, 8 February 2023

Maribyrnong River flood review

David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (12:23): (21) My question is again to the Minister for Water. Minister, did you or any member of your office have any communication yesterday with Melbourne Water in relation to the appointment of Mr Nick Wimbush to the role as chair of the Maribyrnong River flood review?

Harriet SHING (Eastern Victoria – Minister for Water, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Commonwealth Games Legacy, Minister for Equality) (12:23): Thank you, Mr Davis, for that question. Not that I am aware of; I certainly did not.

Members interjecting.

Harriet SHING: I said, ‘Not that I am aware of; I certainly did not.’

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: Order! I think the answer was no.

David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (12:23): President, it was not quite no; it was ‘Not that I am aware of’, and that leaves open the question that staff were involved. Minister, at any stage this week –

Harriet Shing: On a point of order, President, Mr Davis has a habit of a preamble to his substantive and supplementary questions which invites debate. He should in fact be confined to asking the questions that he wants to ask rather than in fact going down these rabbit holes that are pretty familiar terrain for you, and that includes verballing me.

Georgie Crozier: Further to the point of order, President, the question was fairly specific. It was, ‘Minister, did you or any member of your office?’ That was the –

Members interjecting.

Georgie Crozier: She said, ‘Not that I am aware of – not me.’

The PRESIDENT: Thank you, Ms Crozier. It is not a debate, because there is no point of order. On Ms Shing’s point of order, Mr Davis, during question time you called a point of order on a minister making commentary towards the opposition. Your point of order was that question time is not an opportunity to make derogatory commentary towards either side of the chamber. Then just before, in your question, you made derogatory commentary towards this minister. There is no one-way street. I would further advise that as part of a preamble to a question the minister can use that in their response and be relevant to the question within the preamble as well. I call the minister to respond to Mr Davis –

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: Okay. I am up to speed on that one now. Mr Davis, can you ask your supplementary question.

David DAVIS: My question is to the minister again and is supplementary. At any stage this week did you or a member of your office discuss with Melbourne Water how they should respond to media inquiries about Mr Wimbush’s appointment?

Harriet SHING (Eastern Victoria – Minister for Water, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Commonwealth Games Legacy, Minister for Equality) (12:26): Not that I am aware of. I certainly did not.

David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (12:26): I move:

That we take the minister’s answer into account on the next day of meeting.

Motion agreed to.

Melina Bath: On a point of order, President, noting your ruling and your writing to us about behaviour in the chamber, I just heard Minister Shing say ‘gutless’, and I do not feel that that is parliamentary.

The PRESIDENT: I am not too sure if it was directed towards an individual or directed towards a collective, but if it was felt that it was directed towards a particular individual, they can call a point of order for it to be withdrawn.

Harriet Shing: Allow me perhaps to indicate that this was a decision significantly lacking in intestinal fortitude.

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: I do not think that helped. I think the best thing to do is move on and allow Mr Ettershank to ask his first question of the term.