Statement from Mines and Petroleum Minister Norman Moore regarding his wife's decision to sell shares in BHP Billiton, Woodside and Wesfarmers to address perceived conflict of interest

Minister Moore said:

When I came into this job, I sought advice from the Director-General of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet in respect to any conflict of interest issues.

I sought this advice because my wife and I were trustees of a superannuation fund which, with the exception of $4,000 I had contributed to pay for a life assurance policy, consisted entirely of my wife's superannuation funds.

The Director-General referred the matter to the State solicitor.

My wife retired last year and transferred her superannuation entitlement into a self managed fund.

I became a trustee and member basically to avoid the necessity for us to start a new fund when I retire, and so that I could use the fund to pay the life assurance premiums I mentioned earlier.

I sought advice as to whether or not this arrangement breached the ministerial code of conduct.

The advice I received was that I should withdraw as a trustee and member of the fund, and that I should declare an interest in cabinet if any decisions were required in respect to any companies in which my wife held shares.

The advice did not require me to divest myself of any shares because I didn't have any shares.

The shares in the fund belong to my wife and the code of conduct does not require spouses to divest their own shares.

Mr Ripper's assertion that I transferred shares to my wife is simply wrong.

I did not have any shares to transfer.

This is very simple situation seems to have been too difficult for some people, including Mr Ripper to comprehend.

And it was Mr Ripper's government which drafted the code of conduct which does not require spouses to divest of their own assets.

So put simply, I have complied strictly with the code of conduct and the state solicitor's advice.

However, because of constant media speculation about me and my family, my wife has informed me that she will today sell her BHP Billiton, Woodside and Wesfarmers shares.

She is not prepared to sit back and see us and our Government attacked, unfairly in her view, on a daily basis.

By taking this action, which will see her lose $100,000 from her superannuation fund, she has put the Government's interests ahead of her own.

Naturally, I am very grateful to her. However, we do not, by doing this, acknowledge in any way that there has been a breach of the code of conduct.

Far from it, we have adhered strictly to the code.

I will now distribute a copy of the letter received from the Director- General of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet which relays the advice of the State solicitor.

I have done everything required of me in respect to this advice.

A copy of the letter and the audio from the conference is available below.

Minister's office: 9422 3000