Page 4213 - Week 14 - Wednesday, 23 October 1991
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Mr Macdonald's report goes on to say:
There was nothing unusual going on that evening which would have influenced Officer ... to respond in the way alleged.
Mr Macdonald also states:
The Duty Superintendents were only aware of one call, Mr Harris, not being logged in that evening.
Mr Macdonald goes on:
I asked Officers ... and ... how Officer ... recalled the incident and they advised me that Officer ... appears to have a record which he wrote on 17 July -
that is the day after the incident -
in his personal diary. This is unusual for the Station Officers although is encouraged with the new recruits. Neither Officer was aware of any other incidents being recorded in this way.
As far as I am concerned, Mr Deputy Speaker, this is an extremely serious incident that would require that some action be taken; and, indeed, in fairness to the Minister, some action has been taken. Mr Berry has purchased recording equipment which should go a long way to ensuring that incidents like this do not occur again. The other action that has been taken is that the officer concerned has been counselled.
There are, however, two things that arise out of this episode which cause me concern. The first is the attempt by Mr Berry to cover up this matter by refusing to release the report. Mr Berry, in opposition, made much of the importance of open government. But on coming to office he almost immediately attempted to suppress this report - and little wonder. The report is very damning of the officer involved.
The letter I received from Mr Berry in response to my letter of 18 July also gives cause for concern. Mr Berry's letter of 30 August, well after Mr Berry would have received a copy of the inquiry report, tells me nothing about the fact that the ambulance officer involved did not follow the established procedures and should have dispatched an ambulance.
Instead, the letter, which I will table shortly, states that the officer involved has many years of experience and his recollection of events is that the call for assistance was for a medical officer to attend the residence. Mr Berry's letter gave no indication that procedures had not
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