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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 3 Hansard (8 April) . . Page.. 716 ..

MS McRAE (continuing):

Estimates is not about the annual reports and looking backwards. It is about looking forward. It is about looking at budgets. It is about looking at numbers. It is about coming to some assessment of the Government's intent and the Government's action. To get sidelined on ridiculous issues is a nonsense. I am going to sit and listen earnestly to see whether there is one reasonable argument to be put up as to why we should be treated with such contempt.

MRS CARNELL (Chief Minister and Treasurer) (4.37): Mr Speaker, I would like to quote from Hansard of 27 March 1996, and I will quote directly:

I have long held the view that governments ought to make every endeavour to bring down their budgets before the end of the financial year. There are good reasons for this. The first of those - - -

Ms McRae: It has nothing to do with estimates.

MRS CARNELL: You wanted some reasons. You wanted some arguments, Ms McRae, so just listen to this.

Ms McRae: Yes, but something relevant to estimates, Mrs Carnell.

MRS CARNELL: Just listen to the arguments about why this needs to happen. I quote:

The first of those is to allow certainty in departments and agencies as to the extent of their budget funding and their program for the coming year. The second reason is to fit in with our business community who budget on a financial year basis themselves and who, I think, benefit greatly from knowing, for instance, what the revenue regime from the Government will be for the forthcoming year. As for the many community groups who receive funding through the ACT budget, either directly or indirectly, an early budget obviously allows them much greater certainty in their own planning for the forthcoming year. So there is a large number of reasons why an early budget is very desirable.

Who said that? Rosemary Follett. If you want the arguments about why an early budget and getting a budget passed before the end of the financial year is a good idea, just listen to your previous leader. Rosemary Follett, as Chief Minister and as Treasurer, said it in a very appropriate manner. She made all the points that need to be made; that is, that departments need budgets from the beginning of the financial year so that they do not end up three months, four months or five months into the year before they actually get their budget for that year, and therefore potentially can use that to make sure that that is the case.

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