Page 2186 - Week 07 - Thursday, 27 August 2020
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MR WALL: I move:
That the resolution of the Assembly of 2 April 2020, as amended 7 May and 18 June 2020, which established the Select Committee on the COVID-19 Pandemic Response be amended by omitting paragraph (6) and substituting:
“(6) the Committee shall deliver its final report no later than 16 October 2020. Should the Committee determine not to prepare a final report, the Chair shall advise the Speaker in writing prior to 16 October 2020.”.
This is a decision that has been discussed between the three parties in the Assembly. It is being moved by the opposition, as we believe that there is still a need for a scrutiny mechanism beyond today’s sitting of the Assembly to be established to continue to examine the government’s response to the COVID-19 emergency in the ACT. This decision is also justified by the government’s action last week when they extended the emergency declaration by another three months, taking it through to November. They believe that there is still a need for the extraordinary powers to be enabled for the executive to make decisions during the caretaker period. We think that it is appropriate that the Assembly, as an arm of scrutiny, continue to have an oversight function in that. I will leave it to Mr Coe, as the chair of the committee, to explain it a bit more.
MR COE (Yerrabi—Leader of the Opposition) (9.58): The role of the committee is to provide scrutiny in a period when the government has extraordinary powers. I envisage that if extraordinary events or extraordinary activities take place over the coming seven weeks then that would warrant the committee asking questions. I do not see the committee’s activities continuing in their current form; I see them more as enabling us to shed further light on any extraordinary decision, especially during the caretaker period, that otherwise could not be scrutinised by this place. I may be mistaken, but I think that the caretaker convention sent around by the government also makes mention of this committee, so I think there is merit in ensuring that we have this mechanism.
It is unlikely that we will need to conduct public hearings. The committee might choose to write a letter or seek further information, but I think it unlikely that public hearings would need to be conducted over the coming seven weeks, especially in the caretaker period. However, we do need to make sure that, if extraordinary powers are exercised, we have appropriate scrutiny up to 17 October.
MR RATTENBURY (Kurrajong) (9.59): The ACT Greens also support this amendment. We supported the initial establishment of the committee. Given the extraordinary circumstances of the year—the words Mr Coe has used are right—and the additional powers passed in various pieces of legislation, we considered that it was appropriate to have a committee that could oversee those circumstances. We were operating in places no-one had anticipated government would need to operate in, in some regards.
It has been important, as we have gone through this period, for the Assembly to have the committee as an oversight mechanism. We support the extension. I welcome the
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