Page 2414 - Week 11 - Thursday, 2 November 1989
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MR SPEAKER: Order! This is not conducive to good government. Please proceed to answer the question.
MR WHALAN: Mr Speaker, the particular note was a file note; it was not a briefing note. Let us get that quite clear. It was a file note. One of the important things that has come out of this is that we now have identification. I do not know who supplied the note to Mr Collaery, but one must assume that he also gave him some briefing as a background to the note. As to whether the person was a senior officer, that is not established at all by an examination of the file, so that piece of information must come from an alternative source.
Mr Collaery: You told us who it was. You gave the name.
MR WHALAN: I think the person whose name was raised was a person who was previously advised by Mr Collaery to buy certain property in Canberra Avenue, Mr Speaker.
MR SPEAKER: Order!
MR WHALAN: Well, that is true, isn't it?
Mr Collaery: No, it is not true.
MR WHALAN: He did buy the property after you advised him to.
MR SPEAKER: Order! Minister, please address the question.
MR WHALAN: Mr Speaker, the nub of the question is: which is the appropriate level of valuation which should be adopted by the Government? The Government has a firm policy in relation to that, and there is only one source of advice.
Mr Collaery: From Mr West?
MR WHALAN: Now, hang on. When the names of certain valuers in the Australian Valuation Office were mentioned Mr Collaery said, "I have confidence in those people".
Mr Collaery: Exactly.
MR WHALAN: He said, "I have confidence in those people", and he now says, by way of interjection, "Exactly". So he agrees, Mr Speaker, that we have good cause to have confidence in the valuation. The valuation, if there is to be an opinion expressed, whether it be by Mr Collaery in front of witnesses, saying that he would not have paid $700,000 for that piece of land - - -
Mr Collaery: Correct.
MR WHALAN: Yes.
Mr Collaery: That's correct.
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