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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 12 Hansard (19 November) . . Page.. 3771 ..

MS McRAE (continuing):

but, of course, two months down the track, enrolments did not stack up, and suddenly we had a twinning process. We thought that, out of that, it would be very helpful if a better and more comprehensive consultative policy were developed. Our community has been an active partner in all our schools and colleges for a long time, and we think it would be an act of good faith to re-enunciate, reassess and redevelop that policy.

Overall, we have a report which is very critical of a wide range of Government activity. The recommendations cover improvements, specifically in relation to future estimates committee reports, then in general terms about Government activity, as well as some specific new initiatives. I commend all members for their earnest and hard work and I commend the report to the Assembly.

MR KAINE (5.09): Mr Speaker, this year's budget estimates process has been a very interesting one, because of the change in the format of the budget and what it now shows compared to what the old government budget accounting system used to show. I think that that has led to some confusion on the part of the members of the Estimates Committee as to quite what the budget is purporting to show. Those of us who have a background in accounting, of course, understand full well what accrual accounting is about and what the new basis of accounting was intended to achieve. Some of us have been pressing to achieve full accrual accounting for some years, because it is, in fact, a much more comprehensive way of showing what the Government is spending its money on - not how much it is spending, but what it is spending its money on.

I suspect that some members of the Estimates Committee have not quite grasped what accrual accounting is and how it differs from the form of budgets that we had until last year. Hence, there are two phenomena. One is the fact that the Estimates Committee's report is quite uncritical. When you examine it, it is quite uncritical of what the Government does.

Mr Wood: Come off it!

MR KAINE: It has made a few suggestions, but it is quite uncritical. I repeat, Mr Wood: It is quite uncritical of the Government's approach to budgeting. That is one phenomenon. The other is that, because people did not understand what the budget was attempting to do, they asked for a truckload of additional information. Up in my office, on my side desk, I have a pile of information that came back as additional information asked for by the Estimates Committee. I will guarantee that most members of the Estimates Committee have the same pile and they do not know what to do with it.

Ms McRae: I have read every word. It is fascinating stuff.

MR KAINE: You might have read it, but you do not know what to do with it. That is the point. The committee asked the Government to provide an enormous amount of information, which will never be used for anything. What I am suggesting, Mr Speaker, is that perhaps the Estimates Committee ought to reconvene between now and next May-June for the purpose of determining what the function of the Estimates Committee in future years is going to be and how it should go about its task - what the nature of its task is, compared to what it was up until last year. I fear that most of the members of the Estimates Committee certainly have not grasped the difference

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