❓ Dr. Thomas questions the Treasurer's representative regarding discrepancies in answers about the frequency of iron ore royalty re-evaluations and accuses the government of obfuscation. The Minister denies any misleading information and refutes the premise of fiscal impropriety.
AnsweredQoN 1460Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
IRON ORE ROYALTY REVENUE
1460. Hon Dr STEVE THOMAS to the minister representing the
Treasurer:
I refer to the answer to my
question without notice 1440, asked on 26 November, on the 2019 mini boom of
iron ore royalties.
(1) Was the Under
Treasurer correct when, in response to my question on how often Treasury
measured and re-evaluated iron ore royalties, he informed the upper house
Standing Committee on Estimates and Financial Operations on 19 June 2019 —
� we provide budget updates to the
Expenditure Review Committee of cabinet, generally on a monthly basis, but they
are cabinet ‐ in ‐ confidence updates, so I
cannot provide those.
(2) If yes to
(1), why did the response to question without notice 1440 tell the house, ''The
government does not have monthly estimates of iron ore royalties over the
financial year'', when the answer clearly should have been, ''We
get told monthly, but we will not share that information''?
(3) If no to (1), did the Under
Treasurer inadvertently mislead the committee?
(4) Is this kind
of obfuscation and refusal to answer legitimate financial questions a contributing
factor to the emerging issues of fiscal impropriety plaguing the government's
departments?
The PRESIDENT : That is a very
interesting last part of the question. It was not terribly factual, and I think
you were stating an opinion.
1460. Hon Dr STEVE THOMAS to the minister representing the
Treasurer:
I refer to the answer to my
question without notice 1440, asked on 26 November, on the 2019 mini boom of
iron ore royalties.
(1) Was the Under
Treasurer correct when, in response to my question on how often Treasury
measured and re-evaluated iron ore royalties, he informed the upper house
Standing Committee on Estimates and Financial Operations on 19 June 2019 —
� we provide budget updates to the
Expenditure Review Committee of cabinet, generally on a monthly basis, but they
are cabinet ‐ in ‐ confidence updates, so I
cannot provide those.
(2) If yes to
(1), why did the response to question without notice 1440 tell the house, ''The
government does not have monthly estimates of iron ore royalties over the
financial year'', when the answer clearly should have been, ''We
get told monthly, but we will not share that information''?
(3) If no to (1), did the Under
Treasurer inadvertently mislead the committee?
(4) Is this kind
of obfuscation and refusal to answer legitimate financial questions a contributing
factor to the emerging issues of fiscal impropriety plaguing the government's
departments?
The PRESIDENT : That is a very
interesting last part of the question. It was not terribly factual, and I think
you were stating an opinion.
AnswerView source ↗
Thanks, Madam President. I have an
answer.
The PRESIDENT : I am sure you
have.
Hon STEPHEN DAWSON : This is
more a Thursday question for the honourable member; it is Wednesday.
Nonetheless, I have an answer.
(1)–(2) The response to question without notice 1440 was
correctly making the point that the iron ore price is forecast on the basis of
the average price over the course of the financial year. Obviously, the
year-average price will change as the
financial year progresses, but Treasury does not forecast the iron ore price on
a monthly basis.
(3) Not applicable.
(4) The premise of the question is
incorrect.
answer.
The PRESIDENT : I am sure you
have.
Hon STEPHEN DAWSON : This is
more a Thursday question for the honourable member; it is Wednesday.
Nonetheless, I have an answer.
(1)–(2) The response to question without notice 1440 was
correctly making the point that the iron ore price is forecast on the basis of
the average price over the course of the financial year. Obviously, the
year-average price will change as the
financial year progresses, but Treasury does not forecast the iron ore price on
a monthly basis.
(3) Not applicable.
(4) The premise of the question is
incorrect.
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