Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Keneally for her question—albeit, another example of the mud-raking and -throwing that those opposite seek to engage in. The answer to the last part of the question is: to the best part of my knowledge, no, never. If there is anything to update in relation to that, I will check and provide it to the chamber. But that is certainly my understanding, because the Prime Minister had no involvement whatsoever in the decision of the Department of Home Affairs to award that contract—no involvement. The contract decision was entirely a matter for the Department of Home Affairs, as the Secretary of the Department of Home Affairs himself made clear to Senator Keneally at estimates on 25 October. The engagement and the contract had nothing to do with ministers, their staff or their officers and was personally overseen and managed by the department.