‘An extraordinary attack on public officials’

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher accused Liberal senator Jane Hume of an 'extraordinary attack on public officials’ during Senate estimates.

Transcript

00:00I note that Mr. White, who is the new head of fiscal here, that he worked as an advisor

00:09in the personal offices of Wayne Swan and Chris Bowen as Treasurer.

00:14And I note that Ms. Brown supervised that work.

00:18And she also worked on the personal staff of Stephen Conroy as his Opposition Chief

00:22of Staff.

00:23This is an extraordinary attack on Treasury officials.

00:25There would be many Treasury officials...

00:27It's awful what you've done to them.

00:29So Dr. Kennedy...

00:30There would be many Treasury officials, excuse me, there would be many Treasury officials

00:34who have worked in a seconded way to governments of all different types over the last 30 years,

00:44I would expect.

00:45And to be fair, Treasury and the Public Service has a proud record of being apolitical.

00:54People turn up to work and are professional.

00:58And what you are doing here, Senator Hulme, is disgusting and outrageous.

01:05And Senator Hulme...

01:06I just have two more questions.

01:08Senator Hulme, you know, the standing orders give us guidance about impugning the motives

01:15of public...

01:16I didn't impugn anybody.

01:17Oh, absolutely.

01:18Of public service.

01:19Oh, absolutely you did.

01:20And...

01:21If you're going to do it, own it, for goodness sake.

01:22Yeah.

01:23Well, I am...

01:24You're going to be that bad.

01:26I am concerned, Senator Hulme, about the line of questioning that you are adopting for one

01:37of the most well-respected on all sides of politics, public servants in this country.

01:46So Senator Hulme, I haven't finished...

01:48I haven't finished, Senator McGrath.

01:50So I am listening carefully to your line of questioning and do you want to do your

01:57point of order or shall I give Senator Hulme the call for the short amount of time she

02:00has left?

02:01Point of order.

02:02Chair, you...