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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 3 Hansard (7 March) . . Page.. 714 ..

MR QUINLAN (continuing):

I have presented the government's response to Public Accounts Committee Report No 28 relating to the Auditor-General's report on the Public Access to Government Contracts Act. The report recognised the problems identified by the Auditor-General that government agencies have been experiencing in complying with the Public Access to Government Contracts Act 2000 and makes three recommendations to address these concerns.

This government is committed to ensuring accountability in all aspects of government procurement and fully supports the principles expressed in the committee's recommendations. I believe the government's response to the recommendation of the Standing Committee on Finance and Public Administration addresses the concerns raised by the Auditor-General and I commend the government's response to the Assembly.

Question resolved in the affirmative.

State of the territory's finances

Paper and statement by minister

MR QUINLAN (Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development, Business and Tourism, Minister for Sport, Racing and Gaming and Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Corrections) (3.36): Mr Speaker, for the information of members, I present the following paper:

I ask for leave to make a statement.

Leave granted.

MR QUINLAN: Mr Speaker, I have presented a report on the books as at 31 October 2001. During the last ACT election Labor promised to establish a commission of audit into the territory's finances. Today I table the review as part fulfilment of that commitment. This report presents the findings of the commission on the first term of reference from three originally specified. The remaining terms of reference are still being addressed and reports on them will be tabled at a later date.

The report is more than simply just the fulfilment of a commitment. The Commission of Audit represents a line in the sand between the administration of the former Carnell/Humphries government and the Stanhope Labor government. In practical terms, the line in the sand takes everything known about the previous government's policies and directions as at 31 October 2001 and considers the estimated end-of-year outcome-that is, 30 June 2002-based on those policies. That is, if the 2001-02 budget had continued on song or on budget for the remainder of the financial year, what financial impact would the pre-November decisions of the previous government and variations from estimates have had on the end-of-year outcome? The policy directions of this government have been deliberately excluded from the report.

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