Clerk of the Senate Harry Evans has been letting loose at Special Minister of State Eric Abetz this morning in hearings of the Senate Finance and Public Administration References Committee over government advertising. Is this going to be the much anticipated showdown?

While we wait for the dust to settle, it might be good to look at the historical context.

Evans can be extremely precious, but Eric Abetz’s views of the man have been different in the past. Have a look at this Latelinetranscript from 2001, also on government advertising. Who did Abetz quote to support his arguments:

“But let me say, as to the Labor Party proposal for legislation, one of the nation’s foremost legislative experts, Harry Evans, the Clerk of the Senate, described Labor’s proposal as – and let me quote – as “vague, imprecise rules and what are normally called motherhood statements” and that is so typical of what we have now come to expect from Mr Beazley, motherhood statements without any substance, without any capacity to implement the motherhood statements.”