Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the motion to take note of Senate estimates committee reports. I particularly wish to speak about the report of the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee and, specifically, the coalition senators' dissenting report. That report relates to evidence given to the committee by the Infrastructure and Surface Transport Policy Division of the Department of Infrastructure and Transport on 23 May about the allocation of funding out of a $20 million package to Tasmania. The committee, in the view of coalition senators, was clearly given the impression that the allocation process for this money had not been finalised, that it was still being negotiated with the Tasmanian government and that it would be some time before those announcements might be made—and that there were some things which needed to occur before those announcements could be made, in particular the provision of a report from Infrastructure Australia to the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Mr Albanese, in relation to the funding and some other matters concerning strait freight services.

It was a real surprise to members of the committee, particularly other coalition members and me, to find in media reports on the morning of 24 May that the allocation of some of that funding had been announced. Clearly the handing of the report to Minister Albanese by Infrastructure Australia, which, we had been given the impression, was a necessary precursor to the announcement, had not occurred by that time. We subsequently found out that there had been a postdated, embargoed media release—obviously issued on the afternoon of 23 May, before the committee had even heard evidence—making the announcement. I admit that the media release appears to have been put out in a rush, since Minister Albanese has mixed up the electorate of his colleague the member for Lyons, Dick Adams, whom he has named as the member for Bass.

Members of the coalition on the committee were seriously disturbed by this. We sincerely believe that the committee was misled—by the actions of Minister Albanese more so than by the evidence of the officials. I do not have any concerns about what the officials told us. I think they believed they were giving us correct evidence. But the actions of Minister Albanese have put us in the situation where the coalition believes that the committee was misled. In fact the chair, on the morning of 24 May when we raised this matter again, said—and this is from Hansard:

Thank you. Now, with all due respect, I know I sat here as you did ask those questions of the officers last night and I certainly share that you have some form of reason to be upset.

I note that the committee wrote to Minister Albanese and the officers concerned. They have written back. The concern we have with the report is that it says that the committee is satisfied with those responses. Coalition senators are not satisfied with those responses. We certainly believe that the committee was misled.

It is a very rare thing for a dissenting report to an estimates committee to be tabled in this place and I wanted to bring the Senate's attention to that. I say to Minister Albanese that he should have more respect for the Senate and for Senate processes. He has spent a lot of time lecturing others in this building about the operation of processes within both the House and the Senate. Perhaps he could give that lecture to himself the next time he is in front of the mirror.