Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Arts) Share this | Hansard source

Thanks, Speaker. I reckon there's a chance you've got a role on this one, and that is with respect to standing order 105, which requires that, where we are dealing with a minister's written reply to a question, if a reply has not been received within a reasonable time then there is a capacity for you to take action on behalf of the House. A similar situation arose on 12 May, when, in response to a question from the member for Whitlam—where the member for Whitlam asked: 'My question is to the Treasurer. How many Australians are now earning more than their normal wage because they're receiving the JobKeeper subsidy of $1,500 a fortnight?'—the Treasurer took that question on notice. Since that moment, the House has heard nothing more. Practice refers to a practice where sometimes an answer can be given in writing directly to the member, sometimes it can be given in writing to the Clerk and sometimes it can be given at the dispatch box. But we have a case here where the Treasurer has taken a question on notice, we've had a number of sitting days in question time subsequently, and nothing has come back to the House. Is there any procedure available where you would be able to take action in the way that is otherwise provided for questions on the Notice Paper?

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