Labor Shadow Treasurer David O’Byrne said Peter Gutwein’s decision to offload half of his Treasury portfolio to Michael Ferguson is a further sign of a fractured party.
“Peter Gutwein has wrecked the budget and now he wants his leadership rival to wear the blame,” Mr O’Byrne said.
“The Premier wants to offload the unpopular parts of his portfolio to Michael Ferguson without giving up control of the purse strings.
“Expect to see Michael Ferguson delivering the bad news from now on as the state slides towards $1.1 billion worth of debt.
“We have already learned that Peter Gutwein has handed Michael Ferguson responsibility for gambling, including taking carriage of new poker machine legislation through the Parliament.
“While there is confusion about how the roles will be split, there is no hiding the clear split between Peter Gutwein and Michael Ferguson.”
David O’Byrne
Shadow Treasurer
