Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Keneally for advice shortly prior to question time in relation to these matters. As I informed the Senate earlier this week, there have been an unprecedented number of questions posed through the life of this parliament—both questions on notice provided through the chamber and questions on notice through estimates committees. In fact, if my recollection is correct, those coming through the chamber are close to being in excess of the total number handled in the two previous parliaments combined, showing the many thousands of questions that have been presented. Overwhelmingly, those questions are answered in as timely a manner as possible. We will look into the particulars in relation to the questions that Senator Keneally has highlighted, and no doubt efforts will be made to provide responses to those in as timely a way as possible.