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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 6 Hansard (23 May) . . Page.. 1601 ..
The following paper was presented by Ms Carnell:
2000-2001 purchase agreement between the Chief Minister and the Chief Executive of the Chief Minister's Department.
MS CARNELL (Chief Minister) (4.16): I present the following paper:
Finance and Public Administration-Standing Committee (incorporating the Public Accounts Committee)-Finance Committee Report No. 5-Report on Draft 2000-01 Budget for the Chief Minister's Department; Draft 2000-01 Budget for the Department of Treasury and Infrastructure; Draft 2000-01 Total Territory Financial Position (presented 28 March Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000)-Government response, dated May 2000.
I move:
That the Assembly takes note of the paper.
On 9 December 1999 this Assembly resolved that portfolio committees would examine the draft 2000-01 budget for each appropriation unit. This has offered the Assembly unprecedented opportunity to have input into the development of the budget. In response, some committees have taken this opportunity, others have not. It has been this government's view that broadening community participation in government can only be a good thing. As part of this view, the government responded positively to the recommendation by the Select Committee on Governance report on the Pettit review to the draft budget proposal. Democratic government can only be strengthened by greater community participation.
The resolution of the Assembly on 9 December 1999 specifically referred to the need for committees to make recommendations that "maintain or improve the operating result". Of the 11 recommendations in the report of the Standing Committee on Finance and Public Administration, there are no recommendations that improve the operating result, 10 that do not directly change it, although some of them imply expenditure, and one that would adversely change it. The government has agreed, at least in part, to nine of the 12 recommendations.
Of those not agreed, some are based on misunderstandings of financial principles, such as the recommendation suggesting that the operating result should be shown net of superannuation interest earnings and retrospective adjustments to the gross provision.
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