Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to amend general business notice of motion No. 186 standing in my name for today relating to the Perth Freight Link.

Leave granted.

I move the motion as amended:

That the Senate—

(a) notes:

  (i) the Abbott-Turnbull election commitment that infrastructure projects attracting more than $100 million of federal funding would require a full cost benefit analysis,

  (ii) that the Abbott-Turnbull Government has committed funding now worth $1.2 billion to the Perth Freight Link for which no business case has ever been provided, for which Stages 2 and 3 have not even been planned or assessed, and which does not reach the Port,

  (iii) that it is important that Federal money granted to a state be spent in a manner that represents value for money and that the Senate has an oversight obligation in this regard, and

  (iv) public interest immunity in response to Senate orders for the production of documents must not just be asserted, rather established;

(b) rejects the grounds for public interest immunity made in relation to six previous Senate orders for production of documents relating to the project, concerning the release of the business case, and specifically those made by the Minister for Finance on 19 April and 1 September 2016;

(c) orders that the full business case and cost benefit analysis for the Perth Freight Link be laid on the table by the Minister for Finance by no later than 12.30 pm on 14 February 2017;

(d) resolves that, if the documents specified in paragraph (c) are not laid on the table by 9 February 2017, the Minister for Finance be suspended from the sittings of the Senate except for attendance in divisions but not for any other purpose, until the documents are produced or by 9 May 2017, whichever occurs earlier; and

(e) calls on the Government not to effect any transfer of funds for the Perth Freight Link until such time as paragraph (c) is met.

Statement by leave: The Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister (Senator McGrath), by leave, made a statement relating to the motion.

Documents: Senator McGrath tabled the following documents:

Transport—Western Australia—Perth Freight Link—Extracts from Hansard, and documents previously tabled concerning related orders for the production of documents.

Question put.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement for 90 seconds.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for 90 seconds.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Senate previously passed orders for the production of documents relating to the Perth Freight Link business case and the cost-benefit analysis, which was part of the business case on five occasions. In addition, on 12 November 2015, the Senate agreed to an order seeking the modelling and forecast of freight figures, as well as peer reviews undertaken of freight figures. That motion also implicitly relates to material relevant to the business case. The government has provided responses and some documents in response to those requests, which I now again table, together with those various previous orders of the Senate. I also table an answer to a question on notice provided by the Minister for Finance on 21 December 2016. These responses explain that the documents sought in the Senate's orders were either cabinet in confidence for the WA state government or contained information that is commercial and sensitive in nature, and their release in a full unredacted form would prejudice commercial negotiations and/or would potentially damage the relations between the Commonwealth and the WA government.

These are public interest immunity grounds that have long been recognised by the Senate to justify the refusal to publicly release certain information and documents. In particular, it should be noted that the release of the documents could prejudice settling the contract for section 2 of the Perth Freight Link, which is not yet contracted. I would note that a summary of the business case was publicly released in December 2014 and further information on the project has been subsequently released by the WA government. The business case summary contains a substantial portion of key information from the business case. I also table that document again for the information of senators.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the amended motion moved by Senator Ludlam be agreed to.