Private email saga: Call for archivist to launch inquiry

Annastacia Palaszczuk’s handling of ministerial records and her use of a private email account should be investigated by the new State Archivist, the Opposition claims.

An investigation into Annastacia Palaszczuk’s handling of ministerial records and her use of a private email account should be launched by Queensland’s new State Archivist, the Opposition claims.

Recruitment for a new State Archivist was launched in March after the departure of Mike Summerell amid ongoing questions about Ms Palaszczuk’s use of two private email accounts.

The timing of Mr Summerell’s departure raised eyebrows, but the government said the outgoing archivist “made his own personal decisions” to move after his contract ended.

Opposition Integrity spokeswoman Fiona Simpson wrote to Mr Summerell on March 8 – the same day he ended a five-year tenure with the Queensland State Archives – asking him to investigate whether ministerial records in the Premier’s private email accounts were being preserved for scrutiny. Ms Simpson said the Opposition would ask the next archivist to launch an investigation into Ms Palaszczuk’s emails.

“Now that the Premier has admitted she used two private email accounts which involved government business, we need to know if there are any more,” Ms Simpson said. “I’m calling for an investigation into the handling of ministerial records by the Premier as we need to know that all ministerial records in the Premier’s private email accounts are preserved for scrutiny.”

Recruitment for the archivist closed on April 7 and it is understood applications are being considered.

A spokesman for Ms Palaszczuk responded by declaring the Premier would write to the archivist “to investigate (Opposition Finance spokesman) Jarrod Bleijie’s alleged practice of deleted emails while Attorney-General”.

Ms Palaszczuk has denied wrongdoing.