Fuel Price Monitoring

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (15:09): My question is to the Attorney-General. Why did the Attorney-General inform the public real-time fuel price monitoring would be in place by spring when, according to the commissioner for consumer affairs, that was never a realistic time frame? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Ms BEDFORD: In your media release of 23 July, you stated the government intended to have real-time fuel price monitoring up and running by spring. In testimony to the Budget and Finance Committee yesterday, the commissioner for consumer affairs, Mr Dini Soulio, said in response to questions, and I quote:

I think the use of the word 'spring' in a media release was unfortunate and I am not sure how that slipped into there.

And he answered to a further question, ' I think autumn next year is realistic.'

The Hon. V.A. CHAPMAN (Bragg—Deputy Premier, Attorney-General, Minister for Planning and Local Government) (15:10): I thank the member for her question. As I indicated to her, when she asked me about this several weeks ago, I confirm that as at July we did expect that this matter could be delivered in that time. As I reported to the parliament during the debates, the member for Florey herself raised serious concerns about the alleged conduct of one of the principal data providers, indeed the data provider to the Queensland Labor government, whose model we presented to this parliament, who have now accepted that model, for the introduction.

Such was the scathing level of criticism of that particular agency, I subsequently had a conversation with the commissioner, Mr Soulio. He felt, in light of the statements made, it was prudent that a full tender process be initiated to invite other data providers for that selection. I make no comment on the validity of the statements made by the member for Florey in relation to that operator.

I note, from what I understand, that there's been no distancing of the Queensland Labor government from their contractual arrangements with this particular provider; nevertheless, it was prudent, on the advice of the commissioner, that he go to full tender. Obviously, that was going to take some months. He informed me of the same. I subsequently made public statements to confirm that that tender process is expected to be completed before Christmas, and I stand by both statements.