Neither Mark Turner nor Michael Gunner interviewed by Privileges Committe inquiry into cocaine scandal

Neither exiled MLA Mark Turner nor Chief Minister Michael Gunner were questioned by the Privileges Committee over the cocaine sex scandal, leading the inquiry to be described as an “absolute farce”.

EXILED MLA Mark Turner was not interviewed by the Privileges Committee over his involvement in the so-called cocaine sex scandal, with government ministers limiting the inquiry to just a single piece of evidence.

Chief Minister Michael Gunner and the woman at the centre of the scandal were also not interviewed, after government ministers moved to shut down anyone from giving in-person accounts of the saga.

The Privileges Committee on Thursday cleared Mr Turner of having misled parliament on three separate allegations.

Minutes published of the investigation process showed Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro and Deputy Leader Gerard Maley moved to have Mr Turner and Mr Gunner, and three other people, to “give evidence in person”.

Blain MLA Mark Turner did not have to give evidence at the inquiry. Photograph: Che Chorley

Chief Minister Michael Gunner wasn’t questioned either. Picture Julianne Osborne

Labor’s Natasha Fyles, Eva Lawler and Chansey Paech used their 3-2 majority to vote down the motion.

A variety of transcripts of press conferences, text messages, emails and news articles were also put forward by Ms Finocchiaro and Mr Maley to be subpoenaed, but Ms Fyles, Ms Lawler and Mr Paech again voted against the motion.

The three also voted down a motion for the ICAC Commissioner at the time, Ken Fleming QC, to provide a “formal briefing” to the Privileges Committee.

Mr Fyles, Mr Lawler and Mr Paech voted instead to “limit the scope of the inquiry to a statement made by the Member for Blain to the Assembly on 17 February 2021”.

CLP MLA Marie-Clare Boothby, who introduced the motion to refer Mr Blain to the Privileges Committee in February, said on Friday that the inquiry was an “absolute farce”.

The CLP’s Marie-Clare Boothby described the lack of questioning as “an absolute farce”. Photograph: Che Chorley

“The committee was dominated by Labor members who used their numbers to block crucial evidence and stamp out anything that resembles a legitimate inquiry,” Ms Boothby said.

Privileges Committee chair Natasha Fyles did not respond to specific questions about why Mr Gunner or Mr Turner did not appear before the committee, but ruled out Mr Turner returning to caucus.

“The Privileges Committee considered the referral and found that the elements required to be proved for an offence of deliberately misleading the Assembly were not capable of amounting to an offence against the Assembly,” Ms Fyles said.

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