Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources) Share this | Hansard source

We will start from the beginning. Firstly, I don't think for a minute that you are suggesting that the government, of which you were a member when you established the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, were running a protection racket when you put in the provisions in terms of the public governance, accountability and reporting of that particular organisation. On the basis that this particular bill is proposing to establish this organisation in an almost mirror image of how that organisation was established along its governance, accountability and reporting requirements, I'm not quite sure why you would suggest that we are running, as you put it, 'a protection racket'. I'd be interested to hear from you the difference between your establishment of something not being a protection racket, but you seem to think you can throw that at us.

In relation to the specifics of the requirements in relation to governance, accountability and reporting, as I said, the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 requires this particular organisation to be subject to the provisions of that particular act, as is every other entity of a similar type. You'll also note that, because of the way it's been established, this organisation will be subject to the same sort of Senate scrutiny as others through the estimates process, in which you, obviously, actively take part.

There is, we believe, an appropriate level of parliamentary oversight over the directions of the responsible ministers through exactly the same method and means and in exactly the same way as you have accepted over many years with the reporting of other organisations. This will be no different. The level of oversight, reporting, accountability and transparency will be absolutely no different to other organisations of similar establishment. So I'm struggling to work out what particular aspect of the proposed establishment of this organisation you see as different to the mechanisms and requirements of the establishment of other organisations—as I said, particularly the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, set up under your government.