John Faulkner (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

asked the President of the Senate, upon notice, on 9 June 2011:

(1) With reference to Department of Parliamentary Services (DPS) staffing numbers and staff management policies:

(a) what is the current number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff and at what levels are these positions classified;

(b) what is the projected number of FTE staff and associated classifications for the next 3 financial years;

(c) for each calendar year since 2005, can figures be provided for:

(i) the number of staff separations from DPS,

(ii) the number of separations in the following categories: termination, resignation, retirement (age), retirement (other) or death, return to home agency, end of non-ongoing employment, and transfer or promotion to another agency, and

(iii) the number of incidents of bullying reported to or recorded by DPS;

(d) what measures (in detail) have been taken by DPS to address complaints and incidents of bullying in the workplace;

(e) have any incidents of bullying been identified through staff exit surveys; and

(f) what measures does DPS use to assess the success of measures to counter bullying in the workplace.

(2) With reference to the treatment by DPS of billiard tables and other equipment from the former staff recreation room:

(a) apart from the two billiard tables sold through ALLBIDS Auctions, what has become of all other furniture, fittings and fixtures from the former staff recreation room, including the following items:

(i) pool table,

(ii) ping pong table,

(iii) dart board and cupboard,

(iv) trophy cabinets and trophies,

(v) piano,

(vi) tables,

(vii) chairs,

(viii) light fixtures,

(ix) carpet,

(x) accessories, and

(xi) any other items;

(b) for all items disposed of, can the following details be provided:

(i) any heritage assessment, significance or expert advice undertaken, assessed or obtained before disposal,

(ii) the manner of disposal,

(iii) whether any intermediary such as an auction house was used in the disposal,

(iv) the original value,

(v) the valuation prior to sale, and the basis of that valuation and of the original valuation,

(vi) any reserve set,

(vii) the value realised through sale,

(viii) the destination of any funds realised, and

(ix) any other details available including the date of sale, provenance and ownership of the item, and identity of the purchaser;

(c) if any items from the former staff recreation room were retained, can details be provided of the retained items, including their current location and plans for future use; and

(d) was Old Parliament House contacted before the sale of the billiard tables; if so, when and with what response; if not, why not.

(3) With reference to the construction of the Parliament House briefing room:

(a) how many DPS staff were displaced by the construction of the briefing room;

(b) where are those displaced staff currently located; and

(c) how many of those staff have moved, or will move, into the new office accommodation on the site of the former staff recreation room.

(4) With reference to the asset management policies and practices of DPS, including, but not limited to, the Parliament building itself, and its furniture and artworks:

(a) can details be provided of any charter for managing Parliament House and related assets, including governance arrangements and authority to dispose of items;

(b) can an account be provided of the disposal policies and procedures followed by DPS, including: the procedures involved for initiation and consideration of disposal proposals, the decision-making processes, the valuation of items to be disposed of, the basis on which the value of assets is assessed as appreciating or depreciating, and procedures for ensuring value for money is achieved in the disposal process;

(c) when items are disposed of for sale, is there any policy in relation to the disclosure during the sale process of the Parliament House provenance of the items;

(d) does DPS maintain a register of assets, including artworks; if so, how are items recorded and updated;

(e) when was the last full audit of DPS assets conducted, by whom was it conducted and what was the outcome, including the number, value and significance of any items missing or unaccounted for and action taken to locate them;

(f) can details be provided of any original Parliament House items disposed of since 2000, including the reason for disposal, the value of the items and the manner of disposal; and

(g) in relation to furniture, can details be provided of any items of furniture that have been replaced since the building opened in 1988, together with:

(i) the reason for replacing them,

(ii) the date of replacement,

(iii) details of plans for future replacement of furniture as reported in the press on 21 May 2011,

(iv) the rationale for the planned replacements,

(v) the original value of the items to be replaced,

(vi) the cost of planned furniture replacement,

(vii) an assessment of how the quality and design of the replacement furniture compares with the original furniture, and

(viii) procedures for ensuring that the design elements of the original furniture are maintained in the replacement furniture.

(5) With reference to the Bertoia diamond chairs and other original outdoor furniture at Parliament House:

(a) can details be provided of any original outdoor furniture that has been disposed of, including:

(i) any heritage assessment, significance or expert advice undertaken, assessed or obtained before disposal,

(ii) manner of disposal,

(iii) whether any intermediary such as an auction house was used in the disposal,

(iv) original value,

(v) the valuation prior to sale, and the basis of that valuation and of the original valuation,

(vi) any reserve set,

(vii) value realised through sale,

(viii) destination of any funds realised, and

(ix) any other details available, including: the date of sale, provenance and ownership of the item, and identity of the purchaser;

(b) if original outdoor furniture has been retained, can details be provided of its current location and any future plans in relation to it;

(c) can details be provided of any new outdoor furniture that has been acquired; and

(d) can the following details be provided in relation to the Bertoia diamond chairs:

(i) how many have been sold or otherwise disposed of,

(ii) what were the proceeds of any sale,

(iii) is DPS satisfied that value for money was achieved in any sale of the Bertoia diamond chairs,

(iv) if any Bertoia diamond chairs were disposed of, did DPS undertake a heritage assessment of the items before the sale, and

(v) if a heritage assessment was undertaken, by whom was it undertaken and what qualifications or expertise did they have.

(6) With reference to the terracotta pot plant holders previously located throughout Parliament House:

(a) what is the current location of the terracotta pot plant holders and are there any future plans in relation to them;

(b) if any of the terracotta pot plant holders have been disposed of, can the following details be provided:

(i) whether any heritage assessment, significance or expert advice was undertaken, assessed or obtained before disposal,

(ii) the manner of disposal,

(iii) whether any intermediary such as an auction house was used in the disposal,

(iv) the original value,

(v) the valuation prior to sale, and the basis of that valuation and of the original valuation,

(vi) any reserve set,

(vii) the value realised through sale,

(viii) the destination of any funds realised, and

(ix) any other details available, including: the date of sale, provenance and ownership of the item, and identity of the purchaser; and

(c) what is the estimated value of the original collection of terracotta pot plant holders.

(7) With reference to the heritage management of Parliament House:

(a) has Parliament House been nominated for Heritage Listing; if so, can full details be provided;

(b) is DPS satisfied that it has discharged all of its responsibilities to ensure that Parliament House complies with the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), the Commonwealth Heritage List, the Commonwealth Heritage Management Principles, and the National Heritage List; if so, how has this been achieved; if not, why not;

(c) what strategies does DPS employ to ensure that:

(i) the original design elements of Parliament House, and

(ii) the integrity of the original design and construction of Parliament House,    are maintained to the appropriate standard for the estimated 200 year life of the building, and how are these documented and reported;

(d) can copies be provided of the current and all previous versions of the Heritage Strategy for Parliament House, including the date of each draft, and its current status and author/s;

(e) who was consulted in the preparation of the Heritage Strategy for Parliament House;

(f) is there any independent or expert oversight of Parliament House in relation to heritage management and design integrity;

(g) does DPS retain spare original building materials, fixtures and fittings to meet the requirement of the building throughout its 200 year life; if so, can details be provided, including quantities of such materials and their original value;

(h) has DPS disposed of any spare original building components, materials, fixtures and fittings; if so, can full details be provided, including: the rationale for the disposal, whether any heritage assessment was undertaken, the manner of disposal, the original value of the materials, and the value realised from the sale or disposal;

(i) in managing projects to upgrade physical security or disability access or in undertaking modernising works, what procedures does DPS employ to manage the heritage aspects of the work; and

(j) are architects engaged by DPS required to provide:

(i) written reports to confirm how their new work conforms to the design integrity of Parliament House, and

(ii) heritage impact statements as part their work.