Page 1142 - Week 04 - Thursday, 29 March 1990
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price, to be collected through the building permit process. This proposal will also need to be considered in the context of the Government's overall attitude to future industry funding of training.
I believe, however, that pending decisions regarding the funding of training by all Territory employers, conversion of part of the long service leave levy for training is a useful start.
The Bill provides for a 10 per cent portion of the levy to be set aside with effect from 1 July 1989. It also extends the functions and powers of the board to allow it to administer the training and projects fund. This makes use of the existing infrastructure, can be undertaken at little cost and has the support of both employee and employer organisations.
The Bill provides the Minister with a discretionary power over the disbursement of the training funds and the reference to "the Australian Government Actuary" is replaced by the words "an actuary appointed by the (ACT) Treasurer".
The third aspect covered by the Bill concerns the investment of board moneys. Under section 23 of the Act all contracts over $100,000 must be approved by the Minister. Up until mid-1988 the board operated under legal advice that this provision did not apply to investments of board funds. However, in the 1988 report on the board's operations, the Australian Auditor-General drew attention to a new interpretation from the Australian Attorney-General's Department which stated that an investment was considered to be a contract and, as such, each investment over $100,000 must be approved by the Minister.
All current board investments exceed that amount, Mr Speaker, and the necessity to obtain the Minister's approval each time an investment is made is considered to be cumbersome and unnecessary. The Government accepts the advice of the ACT Treasury that, given the short time frame in which the money market operates, that such investments occur regularly and that the form of investment is both safe and liquid, then ministerial approval is not required.
The Bill allows the board to invest moneys in excess of $100,000 without requiring ministerial approval, provided such investments are made in accordance with section 90 of the Audit Act 1989. I commend the Bill to the Assembly and present the explanatory memorandum for the Bill.
Debate (on motion by Mr Berry) adjourned.
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