THE state Liberal Opposition has demanded to know why tighter restrictions are not imposed on ministers and their staff combining private holidays with taxpayer-funded business trips.
Liberal leader Will Hodgman wants Tasmania to adopt strict controls, in line with those in place in Victoria, to prevent the potential rorting of business trips by ministers, their advisers and public servants.
The move follows public outrage at the disclosure yesterday that Children’s Minister Lin Thorp has taken an adviser, who is also her close friend, with her on a $17,000 study trip to England.
Ms Thorp and lifelong friend Sandie Shepperd are in London for a series of meetings focusing on child protection and youth justice issues, despite Ms Shepperd being the special adviser on the education portfolio.
The two women are being joined by their partners on Friday for a fortnight-long holiday in the Mediterranean.
The Victorian Government has strict rules in place discouraging and curtailing holidays being combined with overseas work trips, where the flights have been paid by the taxpayer.
“Requests to add private travel onto official travel should only be approved if the extension does not create the impression that official travel is being used to subsidise private travel arrangements,” the Victorian public service guidelines state.
Mr Hodgman would like similar rules considered for Tasmania.
He questioned why Ms Thorp had not disclosed her “unusual” decision not to take her specialist children’s adviser, Jennifer Thain, with her to London, instead choosing her old university friend and now education adviser Ms Shepperd.
Mr Hodgman said Ms Thorp could expect all aspects of her trip to be scrutinised closely in Parliament on her return.
