Andrews’ secret China trip could be probed in inquiry for lack of transparency

A push to establish a parliamentary inquiry into Daniel Andrews’ Chinese trade mission appears to have already failed.

A push to establish a parliamentary inquiry into Daniel Andrews’ Chinese trade mission appears to have already failed, with the Greens ruling out support for a probe.

When parliament resumes in May, Victoria’s upper house will be asked to vote on whether the Premier’s four-day overseas trip should be probed by the Economy and Infrastructure Committee.

But in a massive blow to the opposition’s quest for an inquiry into the international expedition, Victoria’s four upper house Greens MPs won’t give their vote of support.

An inquiry could force the secretary of the Department of Premier and Cabinet (DPC), Jeremi Moule, to provide evidence and information about the trip.

Opposition MP David Davis, who is deputy chair of the Economy and Infrastructure Committee, initially referred the inquiry to the nine-member Committee.

The Committee is made up of three crossbench MPs, three Labor MPs and three Liberal MPs. For it to pass, Mr Davis would have to rely only on the support of two crossbench MPs to receive a majority vote of five.

But on Friday the Herald Sun was told the inquiry was instead to be referred to the upper house, meaning all 40 MPs would vote on whether to pursue it.

To be successful, the opposition — which has 14 seats in the Legislative Council, including two Nationals MPs, will need seven votes.

Greens leader Samantha Ratnam on Friday afternoon confirmed to the Herald Sun that “the Greens will not be supporting this referral”.

The Liberals would require votes of support from the remaining seven crossbench MPs including two Legalise Cannabis MPs and Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell, who is chair of the committee.

Daniel Andrews in China, 2016. Picture: Instagram

The Premier could not be compelled to front the inquiry.

Opposition spokesman David Davis, who is deputy chair of the committee, referred the matter on Thursday.

“This is important. Without proper transparency, without proper accountability, we can’t be sure that we are getting the best outcomes that Victorians would expect,” he said.

“This would be an opportunity to interrogate and question the secretary of DPC about what has been achieved and ask what else would have been achieved if the trip had been more open and transparent.”

Ms Purcell, who said she was “blindsided” by Mr Davis’ announcement, said the Economy and Infrastructure Committee wasn’t due to meet until the end of April.

“As the matter in question is not currently before the Committee for consideration and with the limited time to consider the proposal, as Chair, I have no further comment,” she said.

A Victorian government spokeswoman said parliamentary inquiries are a matter for the parliament.

“The Premier’s office is sending out daily itinerary and summaries of his meetings, and a full report will be submitted in the usual way,” she said.

Opposition leader John Pesutto said he supported international trade missions but that the Premier had serious questions to answer.

“For Daniel Andrews to go to China and drip feed Australian media, particularly Victorian media and the Victorian people, with very basic information that doesn’t tell anybody what the real purposes of the visit are, is a real slap in the face when it comes to transparency,” he said.

“I don’t find it acceptable at all that these types of trips can be conducted to the exclusion of the media.

“We are all entitled to know the full details of the trip.”

Daniel Andrews visiting the Nanjing City Wall in China during a walking tour in September, 2015. Picture: Instagram

According to a one-page briefing note written by the Premier’s office, Mr Andrews on Thursday travelled from Nanjing to Chengdu, where he met with Australian Consul General, Dominic Trindade, and the party secretary of the Communist Party of China’s Sichuan Provincial Committee.

The document added that Mr Andrews also met with the Jiangsu Governor, Xu Kunlin, who spoke of his “fondness” for Victorian produce and expressed his plans to visit Melbourne next year.

Acting Premier Jacinta Allan said she hadn’t spoken to Mr Andrews but was being briefed by his office.