Nick Minchin (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance and Administration) Share this | Hansard source

This is done to the end objective of ensuring that investors are fully informed. We support that objective that, of course, they should be aware of all the theoretical risks. For a company like Telstra, which is probably the most heavily regulated company in Australia, and of course those opposite want it even more heavily regulated—so why they cry crocodile tears now about the level of regulation, I am not sure; again, it is a reflection of their incoherence—it is important that investors, in considering whether to participate in this offer, are fully informed about that regulatory environment. What Telstra’s lawyers have told them, they are required to say about those risks, albeit that most of them could well be described as theoretical. So that is a proper statement that needs to be set out in the prospectus. That is also the case with respect to Mr Cousins.

It is an obligation on the company to set out for the sake of investors its legal obligations with respect to the theoretical risks if Mr Cousins were found to be, according to their tests, not independent. If you read the prospectus, you will see that of course it is heavily couched in that sort of language. We understand the company’s legal obligations. We understand that they are required by their lawyers to put down all these sorts of theoretical risks in the prospectus. But what is important is that people understand that we have made it quite clear, as has Mr Cousins, that he will act independently in his capacity as a director.

The crocodile tears we see from this lot reflect the incoherence of their position. They are the ones saying that the government of this country should retain 51.8 per cent of the shares in this telephone company—that we should have $23 billion tied up in a telephone company. But when we come to exercise the responsibilities that go with that 51.8 per cent shareholding they attack us for so doing. It is an utterly incomprehensible position to adopt. You say that the government should have those shares and be the majority shareholder and elect directors at AGMs, but then when we elect a director at the AGM we are attacked for so doing. It is an incomprehensible position. It makes them look utter fools and the community will treat them as utter fools. It is our responsibility to fill the vacancy that exists on the Telstra board at the AGM. We will be the majority shareholder at that AGM. We have indicated that we will elect Mr Cousins as a director at that AGM. We stand by our statements that he will act independently on that board. He will bring great quality to that board. In pursuing this line, you are calling Mr Cousins a liar. He has made it quite clear in his public statements that he will act independently. He is an experienced public company director, with a fine record of acting independently, and I would call on the ALP to stop questioning his integrity.