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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 4 Hansard (9 April) . . Page.. 826 ..

MR STANHOPE: I am fairly comfortable about my credibility, Mr Cornwell. I see that you are out there competing for the Gregs again, Mr Cornwell. I think they are up on Thursday. I thought your effort on Sunday will probably get you over the line again.

Mr Cornwell: I have never won one yet but I am trying.

MR STANHOPE: Oh, so you are going for your first.

Budget-technical changes

MR STEFANIAK: My question is to the Treasurer. Mr Quinlan, late on the Thursday before Easter, you produced the long-awaited, indeed greatly overdue, 2002-2003 budget consultation document, about which so much was said this morning. On page 10 of that document, you refer to technical changes, changes that have a $158 million effect on the territory's operating position over the next five years. No attempt is made to explain this massive impact on the ACT. Can you tell the Assembly what these technical changes are?

MR QUINLAN: I will have to take that question on notice, Mr Stefaniak, to give you precise details.

Mr Humphries: $158 million. Surely you would know?

Mrs Dunne: It will be in your brief under "T" for technical.

MR QUINLAN: I thought it should have been in your brief. These are the October 2001 figures that you put out, are they not? Are they yours? So that I do not risk misleading you at all, Mr Stefaniak, I will get you-

Mr Humphries: You do not know, do you?

MR QUINLAN: No, I do not know this off by heart. Of course I do not. Let me say this much, Mr Humphries: I know more about what is in this document than you do, but I do not know every last figure in there or in the budget papers.

MR STEFANIAK: Mr Quinlan, what value does your consultation document have when massive imposts on our bottom line are left unexplained? Why did it take my question to prompt you to go off and find this information and put it into the public domain, where it belongs and always did?

MR QUINLAN: I will repeat the first answer. These are changes that were in your review of the bottom line, your assessment before the election. These are the changes that gave us the 2 October estimates, Mr Humphries' estimates, so ask him. Cut out the middle man. However, seeing as he does not know, I will get the information to you.

Mr Stanhope: I ask that all further question be placed on the notice paper.

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