❓ Question regarding cost blowouts in the Perth Arena project and the government's approach to managing it. The Treasurer responds by blaming the previous government for mismanagement and cost overruns on multiple projects.
AnsweredQoN 74Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
PERTH ARENA — AUDITOR GENERAL’S REPORT
I was horrified to hear during yesterday’s briefing from the Auditor General that the people of Western Australia are still paying for the mismanagement and incompetence of the former government; the Auditor General said that the cost of the new Perth Arena has blown out to $483 million. Can the Treasurer inform the house of the government’s new approach to properly managing this project? Point of Order Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Mr Speaker, I put to you that the member for Nedlands potentially needs to declare an interest, as he was responsible for the business study on which the government made decisions in respect of this project. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Some members in this place may forget how this place works; I do not think they need to be reminded. I call the member for Girrawheen and the member for Mandurah formally for the first time. I am going to rule the question in order. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr T.R. BUSWELL
I was horrified to hear during yesterday’s briefing from the Auditor General that the people of Western Australia are still paying for the mismanagement and incompetence of the former government; the Auditor General said that the cost of the new Perth Arena has blown out to $483 million. Can the Treasurer inform the house of the government’s new approach to properly managing this project? Point of Order Mr J.C. KOBELKE : Mr Speaker, I put to you that the member for Nedlands potentially needs to declare an interest, as he was responsible for the business study on which the government made decisions in respect of this project. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Some members in this place may forget how this place works; I do not think they need to be reminded. I call the member for Girrawheen and the member for Mandurah formally for the first time. I am going to rule the question in order. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr T.R. BUSWELL
AnswerView source ↗
The member for Nedlands is right: I have been swamped by people who are absolutely outraged at what the Auditor General exposed yesterday in relation to the competence of the previous government. I quickly remind the house that the project went from an estimated cost of $160 million, due to be finished in 2009, to a cost of $483 million, and it will now be finished in April 2012. I suspect that the Perth Arena will cost over $500 million. I will give one small example of the incompetence that was brought to bear. The former government gave out a contract for earthworks worth nearly 10 million bucks. People had to come along and dig a big hole in the ground, take away all the contaminated soil, bring in clean soil, compact it and get ready to build. While that went on, someone decided—I think it was the former minister, the member for Midland—to move the car park and put in an underground car park, which meant that all the soil that had just been trucked in had to be dug up and trucked out again. That sort of thing happened over and over again. That is one of the reasons the project blew out. I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Some members in this place may forget how this place works; I do not think they need to be reminded. I call the member for Girrawheen and the member for Mandurah formally for the first time. I am going to rule the question in order. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr T.R. BUSWELL replied: The member for Nedlands is right: I have been swamped by people who are absolutely outraged at what the Auditor General exposed yesterday in relation to the competence of the previous government. I quickly remind the house that the project went from an estimated cost of $160 million, due to be finished in 2009, to a cost of $483 million, and it will now be finished in April 2012. I suspect that the Perth Arena will cost over $500 million. I will give one small example of the incompetence that was brought to bear. The former government gave out a contract for earthworks worth nearly 10 million bucks. People had to come along and dig a big hole in the ground, take away all the contaminated soil, bring in clean soil, compact it and get ready to build. While that went on, someone decided—I think it was the former minister, the member for Midland—to move the car park and put in an underground car park, which meant that all the soil that had just been trucked in had to be dug up and trucked out again. That sort of thing happened over and over again. That is one of the reasons the project blew out. I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
The SPEAKER : Some members in this place may forget how this place works; I do not think they need to be reminded. I call the member for Girrawheen and the member for Mandurah formally for the first time. I am going to rule the question in order. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr T.R. BUSWELL replied: The member for Nedlands is right: I have been swamped by people who are absolutely outraged at what the Auditor General exposed yesterday in relation to the competence of the previous government. I quickly remind the house that the project went from an estimated cost of $160 million, due to be finished in 2009, to a cost of $483 million, and it will now be finished in April 2012. I suspect that the Perth Arena will cost over $500 million. I will give one small example of the incompetence that was brought to bear. The former government gave out a contract for earthworks worth nearly 10 million bucks. People had to come along and dig a big hole in the ground, take away all the contaminated soil, bring in clean soil, compact it and get ready to build. While that went on, someone decided—I think it was the former minister, the member for Midland—to move the car park and put in an underground car park, which meant that all the soil that had just been trucked in had to be dug up and trucked out again. That sort of thing happened over and over again. That is one of the reasons the project blew out. I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
The member for Nedlands is right: I have been swamped by people who are absolutely outraged at what the Auditor General exposed yesterday in relation to the competence of the previous government. I quickly remind the house that the project went from an estimated cost of $160 million, due to be finished in 2009, to a cost of $483 million, and it will now be finished in April 2012. I suspect that the Perth Arena will cost over $500 million. I will give one small example of the incompetence that was brought to bear. The former government gave out a contract for earthworks worth nearly 10 million bucks. People had to come along and dig a big hole in the ground, take away all the contaminated soil, bring in clean soil, compact it and get ready to build. While that went on, someone decided—I think it was the former minister, the member for Midland—to move the car park and put in an underground car park, which meant that all the soil that had just been trucked in had to be dug up and trucked out again. That sort of thing happened over and over again. That is one of the reasons the project blew out. I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Some members in this place may forget how this place works; I do not think they need to be reminded. I call the member for Girrawheen and the member for Mandurah formally for the first time. I am going to rule the question in order. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr T.R. BUSWELL replied: The member for Nedlands is right: I have been swamped by people who are absolutely outraged at what the Auditor General exposed yesterday in relation to the competence of the previous government. I quickly remind the house that the project went from an estimated cost of $160 million, due to be finished in 2009, to a cost of $483 million, and it will now be finished in April 2012. I suspect that the Perth Arena will cost over $500 million. I will give one small example of the incompetence that was brought to bear. The former government gave out a contract for earthworks worth nearly 10 million bucks. People had to come along and dig a big hole in the ground, take away all the contaminated soil, bring in clean soil, compact it and get ready to build. While that went on, someone decided—I think it was the former minister, the member for Midland—to move the car park and put in an underground car park, which meant that all the soil that had just been trucked in had to be dug up and trucked out again. That sort of thing happened over and over again. That is one of the reasons the project blew out. I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
The SPEAKER : Some members in this place may forget how this place works; I do not think they need to be reminded. I call the member for Girrawheen and the member for Mandurah formally for the first time. I am going to rule the question in order. Questions without Notice Resumed Mr T.R. BUSWELL replied: The member for Nedlands is right: I have been swamped by people who are absolutely outraged at what the Auditor General exposed yesterday in relation to the competence of the previous government. I quickly remind the house that the project went from an estimated cost of $160 million, due to be finished in 2009, to a cost of $483 million, and it will now be finished in April 2012. I suspect that the Perth Arena will cost over $500 million. I will give one small example of the incompetence that was brought to bear. The former government gave out a contract for earthworks worth nearly 10 million bucks. People had to come along and dig a big hole in the ground, take away all the contaminated soil, bring in clean soil, compact it and get ready to build. While that went on, someone decided—I think it was the former minister, the member for Midland—to move the car park and put in an underground car park, which meant that all the soil that had just been trucked in had to be dug up and trucked out again. That sort of thing happened over and over again. That is one of the reasons the project blew out. I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
The member for Nedlands is right: I have been swamped by people who are absolutely outraged at what the Auditor General exposed yesterday in relation to the competence of the previous government. I quickly remind the house that the project went from an estimated cost of $160 million, due to be finished in 2009, to a cost of $483 million, and it will now be finished in April 2012. I suspect that the Perth Arena will cost over $500 million. I will give one small example of the incompetence that was brought to bear. The former government gave out a contract for earthworks worth nearly 10 million bucks. People had to come along and dig a big hole in the ground, take away all the contaminated soil, bring in clean soil, compact it and get ready to build. While that went on, someone decided—I think it was the former minister, the member for Midland—to move the car park and put in an underground car park, which meant that all the soil that had just been trucked in had to be dug up and trucked out again. That sort of thing happened over and over again. That is one of the reasons the project blew out. I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I have been amazed at the rush to the airwaves by members of the opposition. It has been quite incredible. It was led yesterday afternoon by the Leader of the Opposition, the then Treasurer, trying to rewrite history. He said, “Howard, we’re proud of what we were able to do. We’re proud of the fact that the budget tripled. We’re proud of the fact that it is four years late.” Howard said, “Eric, when you were told about it, did you have any idea this was happening?” The Leader of the Opposition said, “Oh, no, but I had a lot of reports given to me about the capital works program. I certainly had reports about progress of the Perth Arena. At times it crossed my desk.” What was the former Treasurer doing when it crossed his desk? Was he asleep? Did people come into his office and move it across in front of him while he sat there? Did he not realise that the costs were blowing out? The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
The best one has been the interplay today between the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works at the start of the process, the member for Cockburn, and the person who was the Minister for Housing and Works for most of the process, the member for Midland, who went on radio this morning. She blamed the former minister. She said it had nothing to do with her. She said she was not there when the project started; that was the member for Cockburn. She said it was his fault. She said that the $160 million was just a speculative amount. That is how they budgeted—a speculative amount. The funny thing was that the member for Cockburn got on the radio a couple of hours later and said that the person responsible, the minister of the day, was Michelle Roberts. They are handballing the poisoned chalice around. Is it her? Is it him? Is it her? I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I was then reading through the transcript of the member for Midland’s radio interview, which we happen to get from time to time. This concerned me. She said that they were getting costings wrong on most major projects. I thought I would look at some of the other major projects. I will quickly share this with the house. I looked at 17 major projects commenced by the former government. We should not forget that Perth Arena is about 200 per cent over budget. That is not bad. The gold medal winner is the entertainment centre, which was 400 per cent over budget. Fiona Stanley Hospital is 320 per cent over budget. The new performing arts centre is only 120 per cent over budget. That is a gold medal winner. On average, seven of the projects—41 per cent of them—had cost blow-outs of over 100 per cent. This was how the former government did business. That is why we have reformed the delivery of public works in Western Australia. I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I want to close with one other observation. Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Mr F.M. Logan : If you’re building in a boom, that’s what’s going to happen. This is going to happen to you. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : When we take out the fit-out, that is what is going to happen. When we move the car park and only give half the money for it, that is what is going to happen. I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
I close by quoting what the member for Midland said this morning. She said — Well I certainly hope that at the opening I might get some credit for what will be a magnificent facility, — Mr C.J. Barnett : Len Buckeridge will thank her. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Len Buckeridge, from his holiday villa in Majorca, will thank her! She continued — — one where we did take choices along the way not to deliver a $160million or a $200million shed … So she wants credit! I will tell members what we will do at the opening. I think we will unveil a statue. We will have the member for Midland, we will have the member for Cockburn, and we will have the then Treasurer—one can have his hands over his eyes, one can have his hands over his ears, and one can have his hands over his mouth!
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