Ten bucks says leaks helpful to government didn't start yesterday

Principle is hard to find when Treasury advice supportive of the Government's position on the stimulus package mysteriously appears courtesy of a leak, while advice more generally must be guaranteed the confidentiality some such as PM&C Secretary Terry Moran says is essential for the proper working of government. But we understand the practice. Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey had a point:

Mr Hockey has called on Mr Swan to publicly release a protected Treasury document obtained by Fairfax which reportedly backs the government's stimulus measures. He said he believed the treasurer was being selective in the information he has released. "I bet my last 10 bucks that protected treasury document says nothing about higher interest rates and higher taxes to pay off this spending binge," Mr Hockey said. "Wayne Swan should release all the treasury advice in full now." Mr Hockey said he could not recall a situation where Peter Costello in his more than 11 years as treasurer ever released protected treasury advice to a journalist.

Except I'd bet my last 10 bucks that the last sentence shows Hockey's memory is pretty selective.