❓ Hon Stephen Dawson questions the Minister for Child Protection regarding funding changes to the WA No Interest Loans Network Inc. and the potential impact on families, particularly concerning the removal of loan capital.
AnsweredQoN 615Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
WA NO
INTEREST LOANS NETWORK INC
615. Hon STEPHEN DAWSON to the
Minister for Child Protection:
I refer to the WA No Interest Loans Network Inc.
(1) Will the
Minister for Child Protection provide an update on the status of the current
contractual arrangements with the WA No Interest Loans Network?
(2) Can the
minister confirm the removal of the minister's trust as at 30 June
2014, a historically provided loan capital of $1.5 million per annum?
(3) How does
the state government plan to fund the No Interest Loans scheme over the next
five years without the support of loan capital?
(4) What was
the value of loan capital provided by the state government to the WA No
Interest Loans Network at the following dates —
� (a) l July 2012;
� (b) l July 2013;
� (c) l January 2014;
and
� (d) 1 April 2014?
(5) Is the
minister aware that an estimated 500 families will be adversely affected by the
government's decision to remove loan capital from the WA No Interest
Loans scheme?
INTEREST LOANS NETWORK INC
615. Hon STEPHEN DAWSON to the
Minister for Child Protection:
I refer to the WA No Interest Loans Network Inc.
(1) Will the
Minister for Child Protection provide an update on the status of the current
contractual arrangements with the WA No Interest Loans Network?
(2) Can the
minister confirm the removal of the minister's trust as at 30 June
2014, a historically provided loan capital of $1.5 million per annum?
(3) How does
the state government plan to fund the No Interest Loans scheme over the next
five years without the support of loan capital?
(4) What was
the value of loan capital provided by the state government to the WA No
Interest Loans Network at the following dates —
� (a) l July 2012;
� (b) l July 2013;
� (c) l January 2014;
and
� (d) 1 April 2014?
(5) Is the
minister aware that an estimated 500 families will be adversely affected by the
government's decision to remove loan capital from the WA No Interest
Loans scheme?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice of the question.
(1) The
department has extended the current contract with WA NILS to continue writing
loans from the ministerial trust fund until 30 June 2014. Given that this
question was asked on 9 April, it meant that therefore that —
Hon Stephen Dawson : I am not sure it was, minister; it
was asked today. You might have had notice some time ago.
Hon HELEN MORTON : I am answering a question from my
file that is dated 9 April.
Hon Stephen Dawson : Sure, but it was asked today. I
just asked it today.
Hon HELEN MORTON : I am talking about the trust fund
continuing through to 30 June, because from April that was a relevant factor,
whereas 30 June is only a short way away.
(2) Yes, the
ministerial trust fund will cease as at 30 June 2014. This is consistent with
the requirements of the Financial Management Act 2006.
(3) The
department intends to maintain the operational funding level for no-interest
loans in WA. The current tender process specifies that loan capital will be
provided by the National Australia Bank utilising the Good Shepherd micro
finance model.
(4) WA NILS audited financial
statements reflect the following values —
(a) 1 July 2012—2011–12
audited financial statements reflect the net value of the ministerial trust
fund as $1.469 million;
(b) 1 July 2013—2012–13
audited financial statements reflect the net value of the ministerial trust
fund as $1.478 million;
(c)–(d) 1
January 2014; and 1 April 2014—audited financial statements for the
2013–14 financial year are due to be provided to the department by WA NILS
by 30 October 2014.
(5) A no-interest
loans scheme will continue to operate in WA and families will still be able to
access this vital service. The department has advised me that it has no
information to suggest 500 families will be affected by this decision.
(1) The
department has extended the current contract with WA NILS to continue writing
loans from the ministerial trust fund until 30 June 2014. Given that this
question was asked on 9 April, it meant that therefore that —
Hon Stephen Dawson : I am not sure it was, minister; it
was asked today. You might have had notice some time ago.
Hon HELEN MORTON : I am answering a question from my
file that is dated 9 April.
Hon Stephen Dawson : Sure, but it was asked today. I
just asked it today.
Hon HELEN MORTON : I am talking about the trust fund
continuing through to 30 June, because from April that was a relevant factor,
whereas 30 June is only a short way away.
(2) Yes, the
ministerial trust fund will cease as at 30 June 2014. This is consistent with
the requirements of the Financial Management Act 2006.
(3) The
department intends to maintain the operational funding level for no-interest
loans in WA. The current tender process specifies that loan capital will be
provided by the National Australia Bank utilising the Good Shepherd micro
finance model.
(4) WA NILS audited financial
statements reflect the following values —
(a) 1 July 2012—2011–12
audited financial statements reflect the net value of the ministerial trust
fund as $1.469 million;
(b) 1 July 2013—2012–13
audited financial statements reflect the net value of the ministerial trust
fund as $1.478 million;
(c)–(d) 1
January 2014; and 1 April 2014—audited financial statements for the
2013–14 financial year are due to be provided to the department by WA NILS
by 30 October 2014.
(5) A no-interest
loans scheme will continue to operate in WA and families will still be able to
access this vital service. The department has advised me that it has no
information to suggest 500 families will be affected by this decision.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.