Page 4004 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 23 November 1993
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Government's so-called voluntary separation scheme. I need do no more than refer to what the Industrial Relations Commission thought of that. Mr Berry always waxes lyrical about the importance he places on the views of the Industrial Relations Commission. We look forward to seeing the outcome of that as well.
Finally, Madam Speaker, I would like to comment briefly on the so-called $10m worth of savings, whether they be from land sales or whatever. If people read the report of the Estimates Committee carefully, they will find that we have various different government departments and programs each blaming one another or passing the buck on to one another over who is responsible for the $10m - or is it $11m, or is it $9m?
Mr Lamont: Mr Kaine could understand it, Mr De Domenico.
MR DE DOMENICO: With the greatest of respect, Mr Lamont, had you been here for all the estimates processes, you would have realised that even Mr Kaine agreed, as did all other members present at the time, that very few, if any, understood the whole situation. Having said that, Madam Speaker, I will reserve the rest of my comments until we have heard what the Government has to say on the report of the Select Committee on Estimates. Like my colleagues, I would like to congratulate Ms Malmberg and her assistants. I would like to congratulate members of the staff of members of the Estimates Committee, who worked long and hard hours preparing with members of this Committee a most significant report. The report has 40 very significant recommendations, and hopefully the Government will take heed of them all.
MR HUMPHRIES (9.12): Madam Speaker, the Estimates Committee has handed down its report on the 1993-94 budget and highlighted some practices on the part of the Government that need addressing. There seems to me to be an absence of commonsense in a large number of government operations. It is a sad and sorry reflection on this Government that after three years in power they still do not understand that the people of Canberra want non-ideological, commonsense government.
Some of the examples of government practice and policy entrenched because "that is the way we have always done things" really make Yes, Minister look like a documentary on some occasions. For example, the Minister for Health seemed to think that members of the committee spoke another language when he was asked how ACT Health was going to deliver dollar savings that had been identified in the budget. Either he did not understand the question or, if he did, he answered another question when that question was asked. The Estimates Committee has recommended that the Minister for Health and the Minister for Education and Training in future justify the expenditure reductions that they propose and provide the committee with some understanding as to how they intend to achieve them. That might seem to Mr Berry to be a tall order. It seems to me, Madam Speaker, to be nothing more than commonsense.
Madam Speaker, I very much support the role of the Estimates Committee in scrutinising government expenditure and operations, but in order to do that more effectively a better lead time needs to be provided to enable members to raise matters of concern from the budget. I was interested to overhear several officials present at one hearing comment that members of the committee were just raising issues as they were presented by the public over the telephone. Quite simply, we
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