Goods and Services Tax

The Hon. T.T. NGO (15:06): A quick supplementary: will the Treasurer publish the advice from the department when it is available, regarding this proposal?

The Hon. R.I. Lucas: The what?

The Hon. T.T. NGO: The advice from the Treasury on the impacts on South Australia when it is available?

The Hon. R.I. Lucas: Of the Productivity Commission?

The Hon. T.T. NGO: No, no, the proposal.

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (Treasurer) (15:06): We are going to do as we have been doing for the last few months—conduct grown-up, adult conversations with our federal colleagues until we actually finalise the deal. We don't want to be in a position at this stage to conduct in the public arena the negotiations. I think the success so far achieved—and there is still more work to be done by the Premier in his negotiations—has been because there have been grown-up, adult conversations and discussions and negotiations conducted. It has not been the approach of the former government, which essentially wanted to spend taxpayers' money attacking the federal government on this issue and indeed any other issue.

In relation to the detail of the deal and the final detail of the deal, ultimately when the deal is concluded all of the information will be publicly available. We are hoping, as has occurred already, that there is a continuous negotiation, where, from South Australia's viewpoint, things improve in terms of the impact on South Australia. We intend to continue to conduct the conversations and negotiations in a respectful, discreet way, and ultimately when a deal is struck it will be publicly announced, and we will be answerable, as will the federal government be answerable, for the nature of that deal, and all of the information will be publicly available in relation to the impact on South Australia.

The mechanism of getting there, whilst of interest, is in the end not the important issue. It is ultimately what is the final deal, and we believe the best way of achieving the best deal is to conduct these discussions and negotiations respectfully and in private, then being answerable for whatever deal is eventually struck.