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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 1 Hansard (20 February) . . Page.. 237 ..

Mrs Carnell: He said that the budget year to date was not, not the actual figures.

MR WHITECROSS: The budget year to date figures against which the actuals were compared were not meaningful and accurate. Mr Speaker, that was what the document I tabled yesterday did. That is the mistake Mrs Carnell has corrected in her December statements. I was not being critical of Mr Lilley; I was being critical of the quality of Mrs Carnell's November financial statements.

MRS CARNELL (Chief Minister) (3.29): Mr Speaker, for the information of members, I present the Government's response to the report of the Standing Committee on Administration and Procedure, entitled "Addresses to the Assembly - Proposed Temporary Orders", which was presented to the Assembly on 26 September 1996. I move:

That the Assembly takes note of the paper.

Our response is concise and essentially expresses our disappointment that the standing committee has rejected the proposal. This Government has introduced numerous reforms that enhance the openness and accountability of government processes. Let me list just a few. The Ministerial Advisory Group, which comprises chief executives and Ministers, meets on a regular basis to provide a collective problem-solving approach to complex policy issues. A range of financial management reforms have been introduced. These include, in the budget context, provision to ratepayers of an annual summary of how ACT taxes are raised and spent. Community councils have been provided with funding to assist them in their administration and activities in the areas that they represent. Councils participate in a combined Community Councils Forum facilitated by the Chief Minister's Department. A "Meet the Minister" program has been put in place, where Ministers meet the community for three hours each month. A comprehensive customer service program has been implemented in all ACT Public Service agencies. The Government has guaranteed a question for each non-Executive member of the Legislative Assembly, and question time remains open until that has occurred. I conduct regular question-and-answer radio programs to facilitate public access to the Government. A customer involvement unit has been established within my department to identify and listen to the concerns of the community and to ensure that, when people participate in consultation processes, they actually receive feedback.

Against this background, we are disappointed that the standing committee has not given support to an initiative which would allow the Assembly the opportunity to follow the lead of the Government. But I am pleased to advise that this process has caused us to give further consideration to the means by which the Government will bring about even greater enhancement of our consultation program. I have asked my department to investigate further options and report to me by the end of March this year. It will take some time to develop these further options, Mr Speaker; but I can guarantee that we will

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