Mr Sercombe asked the Minister representing the Minister for Communications and the Arts, upon notice, on 19 September 1996:

(1) Has Telstra or any of its subsidiaries at any time employed or engaged under contract Mr R Scoble, a former officer of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; if so, (a) in what capacity was Mr Scoble employed, (b) what were his duties and (c) what was his salary.

(2) Did Mr Scoble's work involve overseas travel; if so, (a) was he based overseas and (b) when and in which countries did he work.

(3) Was Mr Scoble's position publicly advertised; if so, (a) when and (b) where was it advertised; if not, why not.

(4) Were there other applicants for the position.

(5) Who were the referees nominated by Mr Scoble in support of his application.

(6) Was a reference provided for Mr Scoble by the present Minister for Foreign Affairs; if so, (a) was it considered by Telstra and (b) what did the reference state.

(7) Was information which had been obtained by a police agency concerning alleged activities by Mr Scoble while working in south-east Asia disclosed to Telstra; if so, (a) was Mr Scoble's engagement with Telstra terminated following the disclosure, (b) what was the nature of the activity disclosed, (c) who disclosed the information, (d) to whom in Telstra was it disclosed, (e) when was it disclosed and (f) what action did Telstra take.

Mr Warwick Smith —The Minister for Communications and the Arts has provided the following answer to the honourable member's question, based on advice from Telstra:

(1) Yes.

(a) Mr R Scoble was employed as a permanent employee and as an employee under contract.

(b) Mr Scoble's duties varied during the period of his employment. On commencement on 25/11/85, Mr Scoble occupied the position of Senior Industrial Relations Officer Grade 2 with the then OTC Australia. At the time of his resignation from Telstra on 21/12/1995 he occupied the position of Regional Representative, Business Development which was based in Hanoi, Vietnam.

(c) Mr Scoble's salary varied during the period of his employment. On commencement in 1985, the position of Senior Industrial Relations Officer Grade 2 had a salary range of $37,889—$39,513. At the time of his resignation, Mr Scoble was engaged as an Executive, and received a remuneration package which included salary, superannuation and

ex patriate benefits and allowances.

(2) Yes.

(a) and (b) Mr Scoble was located in a number of offshore assignments, for the following periods:

         1/10/1988-31/5/1993—Thailand

         1/6/1993-31/5/1994—Malaysia

         1/6/1994-21/12/1995—Vietnam

(3) No. The position to which Mr Scoble was appointed in 1985 was not publicly advertised. Mr Scoble was offered the position of Senior Industrial Relations Officer Grade 2 on the basis of his academic qualifications, his experience in the Department of Foreign Affairs, particularly in the Asian area, and the extremely high regard in which he was alleged to have been held by his supervisors in the Department of Foreign Affairs.

(4) Yes.

(5) The Government is of the view that it would be contrary to the public interest to disclose the names of individuals who were nominated as referees by Mr Scoble. It is particularly concerned that the public release of the names in the context of this question has the potential to cause harm to the reputation of those individuals.

(6) Telstra has been unable to ascertain from its records whether or not the present Minister for Foreign Affairs provided a reference for Mr Scoble.

(7) Yes. Information was disclosed pursuant to sections 8 and 60A of the Australian Federal Police Act 1979.

(a) Although Mr Scoble tendered his resignation from Telstra following the disclosure, he denied any wrong doing and denied there was any truth in the matters raised. Mr Scoble's stated reason for leaving Telstra was to pursue business opportunities in Asia.

(b) The disclosure concerned allegations of paedophile activities.

(c) The Australian Federal Police.

(d) and (e) Information was disclosed by the Australian Federal Police to the following Telstra employees:

In Canberra on 11 December 1995 to Ms Gayle Hill, Special Counsel, Dedicated Projects and Privacy Law.

In Melbourne on 19 December 1995 to Ms Gayle Hill and Mr David Krasnostein, General Counsel.

An external legal advisor to Telstra was also present at these two meetings.

(f) On Friday December 1995, Telstra requested that Mr Scoble return to Australia from Vietnam. In Melbourne on Wednesday 20 December, Mr Krasnostein and Ms Hill met with Mr Scoble in the presence of Mr Scoble's legal advisor.