Call for ‘release of file notes’ ill-thought out

1. The interviewees were promised confidentiality to obtain their candour. To break that confidentiality would be a breach of trust between civil servants and the States. In the extreme.

2. Such a breach would certainly jeopardise cooperation in any future reports. Which civil servant would be foolish enough to ever again trust a promise of confidentiality to elicit their candid cooperation?

3. If the identities and responses of report participants were to be released, they would become the next messengers to be shot, not just Professor Staite. It is naive and even disingenuous to suggest that the report would undoubtedly remain confidential when released to 38 deputies. Especially when some of them were among those criticised.

4. I have seen nothing which shows that Professor Staite acted without integrity. The continued focus on ‘who said what’ takes time and energy away from that which is of greatest importance: what do we do about the findings of the report and its recommendations? ‘When life gives you lemons, use them to make lemonade’: instead of focusing on the problem, focus on finding a solution.

Therefore, given the poor performance report for Home Affairs, I urge Deputy Lowe and her committee to set about finding how to best build a good performance report. And I urge all other deputies to now support that endeavour, even if it requires fresh faces.

Deputies should get on with it. Especially if they want my vote at the next election.

DICK BUNNING

richard@rbunning.com