WA premier leaves door ajar for Buswell

West Australian Premier Colin Barnett hasn't ruled out a return to cabinet for
dumped treasurer Troy Buswell amid opposition claims the treasury workload will be
too much for Mr Barnett.
While maintaining his decision to accept Mr Buswell's resignation on Tuesday, Mr
Barnett did not rule out his return to the front bench.
"It's not a lifelong sentence, but for the foreseeable future, Troy will not be a
cabinet minister," Mr Barnett told Fairfax Radio in Perth on Thursday.
Mr Buswell fronted the media on Monday and confirmed he had a four-month
extra-marital affair with Greens MP Adele Carles.
He also admitted misusing ministerial entitlements for cars and a hotel during the
affair, but backtracked on that on Wednesday, saying he had since had legal advice
he had not misused any funds.
But that failed to move the premier who said he would not consider reinstating his
friend.
"It was never in my mind that there was something illegal about the entitlements,
but I think it was a misuse of them," he said.
"Not a question of legality, a question of propriety.
"On those grounds, I think he needed to step down."
Mr Barnett announced on Tuesday he would take on the role of treasurer ahead of the
May 20 state budget and beyond.
WA Opposition Leader Eric Ripper said the burden of being treasurer and premier,
just a few weeks out from the state budget was too much for Mr Barnett to handle.
"The job of treasurer is now a very big job," said Mr Ripper, a former state
treasurer in the previous Labor government.
"The workload is huge. The finances of the state and the economy of the state are
now too big and too complex for one man to do both jobs.
"The administration of the state is compromised if the one person holds both the
premier's and the treasurer's position.
"It's bad administration for one person to do two jobs."
Mr Buswell was likely to be reinstated as a cabinet member if the Liberals won
another term of government, Mr Ripper said.
"If the Barnett government is re-elected, I do think they will bring back Troy
Buswell, and that is something for the public to reflect on," he said.
"I don't think there's any realistic prospect of (Mr Buswell) returning in the short
term.
"The public will struggle to accept his accounts given that they have been
contradictory."