Mr BEAZLEY (3:34 PM) —Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation.

Mr SPEAKER —Does the honourable member claim to have been misrepresented?

Mr BEAZLEY —Yes.

Mr SPEAKER —Please proceed.

Mr BEAZLEY —I claim to have been misrepresented in an article this morning which appeared in the Age , in remarks in a press release put out by the Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts and then in question time by the Minister for Finance and Administration. In the article, in that press release and in the question time intervention it was alleged that I was a government official or in a meeting with government officials in which Frank Blount, prior to his taking up his appointment as CEO of Telstra, received advice that the government intended a privatisation of Telstra or that official policy tended in that direction.

I have already denied that once in parliament, and when I denied it on that occasion it was following a conversation that I had had with Mr Blount because that rumour had been out there circulating at that point in time. I now say that I deny those allegations again, and I quote from Mr Blount supporting my position.

Mr Tuckey —Mr Speaker, I raise a point of order—

Mr O'Keefe —The finance minister is telling lies in the parliament. Let him get it straight. The finance minister is telling lies in the parliament.

Mr SPEAKER —The member for Burke will withdraw the statement he just made—unconditionally.

Mr O'Keefe —I withdraw, Mr Speaker.

Mr Tuckey —I just wish to take a point of order relating to personal explanations. The Leader of the Opposition is now debating the point and seeking to quote something to support that debate.

Honourable members interjecting—

Mr SPEAKER —I would remind members of the general warning. The Minister for Forestry and Conservation, it has been the practice of the chair to be even-handed with personal explanations, and a good deal of liberty was extended to the Minister for Financial Services and Regulation yesterday. I did it in a way that I thought no-one could take offence at. No-one knows better than the Leader of the Opposition the standing orders in this place. I will hear his quote. If he advances an argument, obviously I will be obliged to sit him down.

Mr BEAZLEY —This is a quote taken from an interview by Phillip Satchell of Mr Frank Blount at 11.25 this morning on Adelaide 5DN:

SATCHELL:

Was he amongst those who was saying it should?

BLOUNT:

I'm going to say that the answer to that in those meetings that you referred to, the meeting before I came, is no. I've had subsequent discussions with him—

that is me—

but that subject was not one that we brought up at the time. But . . . the answer to that is no.