❓ Hon Robin Chapple questions the Minister for State Development regarding incorrect information provided by the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources concerning the Mt Charlotte Mine, seeking accountability for the errors and potential incompetence. The Minister acknowledges the seriousness of misleading information but declines to name the responsible officers.
AnsweredQoN 871Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to a letter I understand was dated July 22 2002 titled ‘Complaints- Mt Charlotte Mine’ signed by Christopher Williams Acting Director General Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources addressed to Mr Trevor Meyer-Forst -
(1) Is it correct that the letter in part states ‘I refer to a letter dated 4 August 1998 written to you by the then General Manager Mining Operations and answers given to subsequent questions raised in Parliament on 17 December 1998 by the Hon Tom Helm MLC concerning the matter. In response to further questions by Hon Robin Chapple MLC on this matter on 25 September 2001 and 7 May 2002 the Minister for State Development acknowledged that details provided by the Department concerning the filling in of old workings and obtaining Crown Solicitors advice which were referred to in the then Ministers letter to you dated 28 October 1998, were in fact incorrect. Please accept my apologies on behalf of the Department for having provided incorrect information to the Minister and for the inconvenience that this may have caused.’?
(2) If no to (1), will the Minister for State Development table the letter dated July 22 2002?
(3) Is the Department or officers within the Department incompetent given that it took the Department well over 3 years from August 1998 to July 2002 to discover that they had provided incorrect and misleading information to the Minister and the Parliament?
(4) If no to (3), why not?
(5) If yes to (3), what does the Minister intend on doing to eliminate this incompetence within the Department?
(6) Does the Minister regard any departmental officer including the Director General of the Department providing incorrect and misleading information to himself and then this information being repeated in the parliament as being extremely serious?
(7) If no to (6), why not?
(8) If yes to (6), why?
(9) Can the Minister state the name of the departmental officer(s) who prepared and signed the briefing note and letter of response for the Minister dated October 28 1998 which now has been found to contain incorrect and misleading information?
(10) Can the Minister state the name of the departmental officer(s) who prepared and signed the briefing note and letter of response for the Minister dated October 28 1998 which now has been found to contain incorrect and misleading information?
(11) If no to (9), why not?
(1) Is it correct that the letter in part states ‘I refer to a letter dated 4 August 1998 written to you by the then General Manager Mining Operations and answers given to subsequent questions raised in Parliament on 17 December 1998 by the Hon Tom Helm MLC concerning the matter. In response to further questions by Hon Robin Chapple MLC on this matter on 25 September 2001 and 7 May 2002 the Minister for State Development acknowledged that details provided by the Department concerning the filling in of old workings and obtaining Crown Solicitors advice which were referred to in the then Ministers letter to you dated 28 October 1998, were in fact incorrect. Please accept my apologies on behalf of the Department for having provided incorrect information to the Minister and for the inconvenience that this may have caused.’?
(2) If no to (1), will the Minister for State Development table the letter dated July 22 2002?
(3) Is the Department or officers within the Department incompetent given that it took the Department well over 3 years from August 1998 to July 2002 to discover that they had provided incorrect and misleading information to the Minister and the Parliament?
(4) If no to (3), why not?
(5) If yes to (3), what does the Minister intend on doing to eliminate this incompetence within the Department?
(6) Does the Minister regard any departmental officer including the Director General of the Department providing incorrect and misleading information to himself and then this information being repeated in the parliament as being extremely serious?
(7) If no to (6), why not?
(8) If yes to (6), why?
(9) Can the Minister state the name of the departmental officer(s) who prepared and signed the briefing note and letter of response for the Minister dated October 28 1998 which now has been found to contain incorrect and misleading information?
(10) Can the Minister state the name of the departmental officer(s) who prepared and signed the briefing note and letter of response for the Minister dated October 28 1998 which now has been found to contain incorrect and misleading information?
(11) If no to (9), why not?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
19 August 2003
Responded by
Parliamentary Secretary representing the Minister for State Development
Response time
67 days
(1) Yes. (2) Not applicable. (3) No. (4) The Department resolved this matter when it was raised as an issue. (5) Not applicable. (6) The Minister for State Development regards any attempt by Departmental officers to deliberately mislead or provide incorrect information to be an extremely serious matter. (7) Not applicable. (8) The Minister relies on the Department as an important source of advice. (9)-(11) The Minister does not intend to name individual public servants who assist in preparing Ministerial responses.
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