Page 4360 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 13 October 2009
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people with a disability—which was delayed due to difficulties in design and scoping of the dwellings to meet the specific needs of families; and $0.644 million for the homelessness initiative “a place to call home”, which was delayed due to difficulties in sourcing suitable sites to locate the dwellings. Details relating to these and all remaining rollovers are provided in the instruments. I commend the papers to the Assembly.
Financial Management Act—statement of authorisation of expenditure from the Treasurer’s advance in 2008-2009
Paper and statement by minister
MS GALLAGHER (Molonglo—Treasurer, Minister for Health, Minister for Community Services and Minister for Women) (3.23): For the information of members, I present the following paper:
Financial Management Act, pursuant to section 18A—Statement of authorisation of expenditure from the Treasurer’s Advance in 2008-2009.
I seek leave to make a statement in relation to the paper.
Leave granted.
MS GALLAGHER: I acknowledge Mr Smyth, who I think wrote to me around seeking the final expenditure of the Treasurer’s advance when it was tabled. It was during that that it was clear that there had been an oversight in that the summary of the total expenditure authorised against the Treasurer’s advance was not tabled within the required three sitting days. I apologise to the Assembly for that.
As required under section 18A(3) of the Financial Management Act, which requires that where the Treasurer has authorised expenditure under section 18 that we needed three sitting days after the end of the financial year, the Treasurer must present to the Legislative Assembly a summary of the total expenditure authorised for that year.
Due to an administrative oversight, the summary of the total expenditure authorised under the Treasurer’s advance was not tabled within the required three sitting days. The Appropriation Act 2008-2009 provided $32 million for the Treasurer’s advance. The final expenditure against the Treasurer’s advance was $22.637 million, leaving a balance of $9.363 million which was returned to the 2008-09 budget. I move:
That the Assembly takes note of the paper.
MR SMYTH (Brindabella) (3.25): I thank the Treasurer for the acknowledgement that my office brought this to her attention. A summary of the use of the Treasurer’s advance in the previous year, what is called the final charge, is usually tabled in August each year. In August 2009, despite a reference to the summary having been tabled in the Assembly, it was not. If members look at documents of 18 August 2009, it lists a final charge for 2008-09. Not having found it, I subsequently had my office ask questions about the final charge from the Treasurer. Initially no-one in the Treasurer’s office seemed to be aware of the matter—perhaps they are too new to the processes—but finally I received a letter from the Treasurer last week which admitted to the administrative oversight. I will just read that letter:
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