Alex White (Labour)

That is a very disappointing response and it is not convincing. With regard to the contention that the provision represents standard practice, it emerged in the debate last night that provisions such as this appear in some Acts but not in others. It is clear it is not a universal provision affecting the types of officeholders in question. I accept the provision is included in some legislation but it seems perfectly clear that it is not contained in others.

I am not sure whether I misunderstand something. I certainly believed I understood the issue last night but now the debate has been reopened. Far from necessitating this amendment, the Standing Order, as read by the Minister of State, actually obviates the need for it. I would like an explanation. If the Standing Order states the committee is to refrain from asking the questions at issue, this is surely an argument not to prevent an individual from answering them. If the committee is not going to ask the questions, one does not have to legislate to stop somebody answering them. That is the point I was making. Unless I have missed something, I believe I am correct in that basic proposition which has not been addressed by the Minister of State. If I am correct in what I am saying, this helps rather than hinders our argument.

I am disappointed by the response from the Minister of State. The Minister for Finance, when in the House last night, appeared somewhat more open to addressing this particular objection. On the general question of gagging and so on, I do not know if this provision represents a wish to gag public officials, although I am suspicious it does. I believe people would be entitled to hold that view.

A controversy arose earlier this year in regard to the appearance of Dr. Somers at a committee of this House. At the very minimum, there was embarrassment, if not fury, on the part of Government when Dr. Somers delivered himself of the opinion that the National Treasury Management Agency had no experience of bank restructuring and was not adequately staffed to deal with it. The furore in regard to his relatively innocent remarks in that regard was extraordinary. I do not believe the response in this regard is unconnected to the attitude being taken by the Minister of State in regard to this amendment. That is my, not unreasonable, view.