❓ Opposition questions Premier about failings outlined in Auditor General's report on DevelopmentWA, focusing on oversight, land sales, and conflict of interest. Premier defends DevelopmentWA, highlighting positive reforms and quoting the Auditor General's endorsement of current board leadership.
AnsweredQoN 176Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
DevelopmentWA—Auditor General report
176. Mr Basil Zempilas to the Premier:
Thank you, Mr
Speaker. I will work on it. I refer to the damning Auditor General report on
DevelopmentWA tabled yesterday that, among other things, exposed negligence in
oversight and governance, improper land sales and pricing practices, weak
conflict of interest management and systemic cultural failure.
(1) Have the ministers responsible for
DevelopmentWA over the five-year period investigated by the Auditor General
accepted responsibility for the failings outlined in this report?
(2) Has the Premier
sought explanations from the ministers who were responsible for these failings?
(3) If not, why not?
176. Mr Basil Zempilas to the Premier:
Thank you, Mr
Speaker. I will work on it. I refer to the damning Auditor General report on
DevelopmentWA tabled yesterday that, among other things, exposed negligence in
oversight and governance, improper land sales and pricing practices, weak
conflict of interest management and systemic cultural failure.
(1) Have the ministers responsible for
DevelopmentWA over the five-year period investigated by the Auditor General
accepted responsibility for the failings outlined in this report?
(2) Has the Premier
sought explanations from the ministers who were responsible for these failings?
(3) If not, why not?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(3) I thank the member for the
question. Of course, if the member had read the report properly, he would have
observed that there were no findings of fraud at all. That is the fact of the
matter. Obviously, the Auditor General made some observations about the board
and the practices of DevelopmentWA, as had occurred previously.
I will quote the report—this
is an extensive quote, so apologies, Mr Speaker. The Auditor General also noted
that positive reforms occurred at DevelopmentWA. She said:
… our observations from later
stages of the audit suggest this is not the same organisation as when these
transactions occurred, and a much needed cultural shift has begun under
strengthened Board leadership in recent years.
She goes on to say:
I am particularly encouraged by the
current Board's explicit understanding of the overlapping, and at times
competing, political, social and commercial environments it operates in and
their associated risks. It has further demonstrated it clearly understands the
responsibility it carries as the steward of assets that belong to all Western
Australians.
That is a glowing
endorsement of the arrangements that DevelopmentWA has put in place.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members.
Mr Roger Cook: Nonetheless, as we always do, we will
value the Auditor General's report and read the Auditor General's report and
the findings. We already have Treasury engaged with the OAG regarding land
transfers between government agencies.
question. Of course, if the member had read the report properly, he would have
observed that there were no findings of fraud at all. That is the fact of the
matter. Obviously, the Auditor General made some observations about the board
and the practices of DevelopmentWA, as had occurred previously.
I will quote the report—this
is an extensive quote, so apologies, Mr Speaker. The Auditor General also noted
that positive reforms occurred at DevelopmentWA. She said:
… our observations from later
stages of the audit suggest this is not the same organisation as when these
transactions occurred, and a much needed cultural shift has begun under
strengthened Board leadership in recent years.
She goes on to say:
I am particularly encouraged by the
current Board's explicit understanding of the overlapping, and at times
competing, political, social and commercial environments it operates in and
their associated risks. It has further demonstrated it clearly understands the
responsibility it carries as the steward of assets that belong to all Western
Australians.
That is a glowing
endorsement of the arrangements that DevelopmentWA has put in place.
Several members
interjected.
The Speaker: Members.
Mr Roger Cook: Nonetheless, as we always do, we will
value the Auditor General's report and read the Auditor General's report and
the findings. We already have Treasury engaged with the OAG regarding land
transfers between government agencies.
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.