❓ Mr Barron-Sullivan questions the Minister for Environment and Heritage about exceeding the Premier's staff limit. The Minister justifies the staff numbers by citing inherited environmental appeals responsibilities and the implementation of the old-growth forests policy.
AnsweredQoN 142Legislative Assembly
Asked
14 June 2001
Member
QuestionView source ↗
MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND HERITAGE, STAFF 142. Mr BARRON-SULLIVAN to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage. Given the Premier’s public statements that the number of ministerial staff would be limited to 10 for each office under a Labor Government, will the minister confirm that she already has at least 19 staff, and how can she justify such a high number of ministerial staff? Dr EDWARDS
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for this question; however, he should have conducted some research before he asked it. Due to the previous Government not being able to sort out the arrangement of environmental appeals, my office hosts the environmental appeals convenor and his staff, and that represents three or four officers. Those staff have been in acting positions for a long time without their positions or salary scales being established properly. We are examining the issue of environmental appeals, and that situation will be rectified. The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND HERITAGE, STAFF
Given the Premier’s public statements that the number of ministerial staff would be limited to 10 for each office under a Labor Government, will the minister confirm that she already has at least 19 staff, and how can she justify such a high number of ministerial staff? Dr EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for this question; however, he should have conducted some research before he asked it. Due to the previous Government not being able to sort out the arrangement of environmental appeals, my office hosts the environmental appeals convenor and his staff, and that represents three or four officers. Those staff have been in acting positions for a long time without their positions or salary scales being established properly. We are examining the issue of environmental appeals, and that situation will be rectified. The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
Dr EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for this question; however, he should have conducted some research before he asked it. Due to the previous Government not being able to sort out the arrangement of environmental appeals, my office hosts the environmental appeals convenor and his staff, and that represents three or four officers. Those staff have been in acting positions for a long time without their positions or salary scales being established properly. We are examining the issue of environmental appeals, and that situation will be rectified. The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
I thank the member for this question; however, he should have conducted some research before he asked it. Due to the previous Government not being able to sort out the arrangement of environmental appeals, my office hosts the environmental appeals convenor and his staff, and that represents three or four officers. Those staff have been in acting positions for a long time without their positions or salary scales being established properly. We are examining the issue of environmental appeals, and that situation will be rectified. The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND HERITAGE, STAFF
Given the Premier’s public statements that the number of ministerial staff would be limited to 10 for each office under a Labor Government, will the minister confirm that she already has at least 19 staff, and how can she justify such a high number of ministerial staff? Dr EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for this question; however, he should have conducted some research before he asked it. Due to the previous Government not being able to sort out the arrangement of environmental appeals, my office hosts the environmental appeals convenor and his staff, and that represents three or four officers. Those staff have been in acting positions for a long time without their positions or salary scales being established properly. We are examining the issue of environmental appeals, and that situation will be rectified. The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
Dr EDWARDS replied: I thank the member for this question; however, he should have conducted some research before he asked it. Due to the previous Government not being able to sort out the arrangement of environmental appeals, my office hosts the environmental appeals convenor and his staff, and that represents three or four officers. Those staff have been in acting positions for a long time without their positions or salary scales being established properly. We are examining the issue of environmental appeals, and that situation will be rectified. The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
I thank the member for this question; however, he should have conducted some research before he asked it. Due to the previous Government not being able to sort out the arrangement of environmental appeals, my office hosts the environmental appeals convenor and his staff, and that represents three or four officers. Those staff have been in acting positions for a long time without their positions or salary scales being established properly. We are examining the issue of environmental appeals, and that situation will be rectified. The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
The other staff to whom the member referred are not in my office. However, the project director for the implementation of our old-growth forests policy has been placed in my office for a very good reason; that is, to implement Labor’s policy to stop logging in old-growth forests. The member for Nedlands supports that policy, and we thank her. It is important that we have a high level officer who can oversee the six or seven departments involved in implementing that policy. Having been in Government, members opposite know of those departments. The project director is based in my office, but he is not paid through my office. He is paid in his own position; that is, the class 1 position that he has had for some years. He also needs some support staff, and they are in my office. Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
Only two policy officers work directly for me. From that point of view, I do my job extremely well. We are implementing a policy to bring about significant change in the State. We are the only State in Australia that is stopping logging in old-growth forests. My final point is that members opposite must examine the subject of their questions. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition should find out how many staff the previous Minister for the Environment had.
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