❓ A parliamentary question regarding advice taken on the CADCOM police communication system, specifically concerning lease/buy decisions and abandonment of the lease, following an adverse Auditor General report. The answer deflects blame to the previous government and highlights current government spending.
AnsweredQoN 1418Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I have been advised that, after being redirected, my question may be running late. If it is late, I am prepared to put it on notice. I refer to the recent adverse report by the Auditor General on the computer aided dispatch and communications services police communication system. (1) Who were the senior bureaucrats from whom police took advice on the lease or buy argument, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? (2) Who were the treasury bureaucrats who provided the advice to abandon the lease, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? Hon NICK GRIFFITHS
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
I refer to the recent adverse report by the Auditor General on the computer aided dispatch and communications services police communication system. (1) Who were the senior bureaucrats from whom police took advice on the lease or buy argument, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? (2) Who were the treasury bureaucrats who provided the advice to abandon the lease, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(1) Who were the senior bureaucrats from whom police took advice on the lease or buy argument, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? (2) Who were the treasury bureaucrats who provided the advice to abandon the lease, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(2) Who were the treasury bureaucrats who provided the advice to abandon the lease, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
I refer to the recent adverse report by the Auditor General on the computer aided dispatch and communications services police communication system. (1) Who were the senior bureaucrats from whom police took advice on the lease or buy argument, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? (2) Who were the treasury bureaucrats who provided the advice to abandon the lease, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(1) Who were the senior bureaucrats from whom police took advice on the lease or buy argument, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? (2) Who were the treasury bureaucrats who provided the advice to abandon the lease, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(2) Who were the treasury bureaucrats who provided the advice to abandon the lease, and what were their qualifications to provide that advice? Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
Hon NICK GRIFFITHS replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
I thank the member for some notice of this question. The Treasurer provides the following response - (1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(1) The original scoping, preparation and negotiating of tenders for the CADCOM system were conducted by some officers of the Police Service. The contract was entered into by the Department of Contract and Management Services, the principal to the contract, consistent with State Supply Commission guidelines. (2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
(2) Senior officers of the Department of Treasury and Finance provided advice on both matters. In the case of advice to abandon the lease, additional advice was provided by the Western Australian Treasury Corporation. The CADCOM project was an initiative of the former coalition Government. Ultimately, the decision-making responsibility for the original financial arrangements surrounding this project rests with the former Treasurer and former Minister for Police. As I indicated in my 2003-04 budget speech, the combined capital and recurrent costs of the DCAT and CADCOM systems and related IT infrastructure and support services since their inception under the previous Government through to 2007-08 will be $509 million. Of that amount, $269 million or 52.8 per cent has been provided by this Government because of a lack of proper budget provision by the former Government. I also remind members that the project was embarked upon without full funding on the strength of a letter of authority given to the Commissioner of Police by the former Premier. The Government has continued with this investment because it is necessary to replace police technology and systems, much of which is 20- years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
years-old or more, so that it remains effective. The Police Service assured both this and the former Government that this significant investment would not only improve capability but also deliver the equivalent of around 300 officers’ time for frontline policing.
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