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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-09-10 Daily Xml
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Question Time

GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Leader of the Opposition) (16:02): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Leader of the Government questions regarding an act of transparency.

Leave granted.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: There never has been an act of transparency passed by this parliament. The act to which I refer is the Premier's, who last week promised to publish credit card statements of government ministers and their staff as an 'act of transparency'. The Premier said that credit card spending from the start of the current financial year by government ministers, their staff and departmental chief executives would be published online. He also, I think, went on to say that it was in part to remove the freedom of information burden when numerous hardworking members of the opposition often lodge FOIs for the same information regarding the same ministers. I am also aware that, under the current FOI arrangements, often individual invoices and transactions are also requested.

The Premier went on to say that also to be published would be the ministers' overseas travel arrangements and the cost of hosting and attending functions by ministers, their staff and chief executives. My questions to the minister are:

1. When can we in this parliament and the general public expect to see this promised information?

2. How often will the information be published: monthly, weekly, half yearly? In fact, how often will it be published?

3. Will the information include credit card details of all ministerial staff and all departmental staff accompanying the ministers on overseas, interstate and intrastate travel?

4. Will the details made available be as detailed as the current FOI procedure or will further FOIs be required to get that detailed information?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for State/Local Government Relations) (16:04): Indeed, this government has led the way in terms of providing transparency and accountability. The former Liberal government never saw fit to introduce these sorts of changes. In fact, I do not believe that it put anything in place during its time in government to improve accountability and transparency whilst it was in government.

I believe that the opposition is being incredibly hypocritical in coming into this place today and scoffing at the incredible leadership, instead of congratulating this government for providing such vision and leadership. I think we are about the only jurisdiction in Australia (I will have to check that detail) that is about to provide the greatest level of transparency and accountability in relation to access to government documents. I congratulate Jay Weatherill on his leadership in relation to this, and I think it is a fabulous step forward.

On 12 November 2012, cabinet noted the development of the proactive disclosure strategy for South Australian government agencies. The proactive strategy proposes that certain proactive disclosure initiatives be implemented in five stages. Stage 1 is the proactive disclosure of selected cabinet documents 10 years or older. Again, we led the way there. The previous Liberal government never sought to introduce such changes. It took a Labor government that was prepared to provide that level of transparency to make those changes. Stage 2 is to update and launch a revised Citizens' Rights to Information Charter and brochure; stage 3 is improved agency FOI information statements; stage 4 is publishing information that is regularly requested and released under FOI online; and stage 5 is that agencies adopt other proactive disclosure processes.

On 17 December, cabinet approved stage 1 by approving an amendment to the cabinet documents 10-year rule policy to allow for proactive disclosure of cabinet documents selected by the minister responsible for the FOI Act in consultation with cabinet and DPC. The policy was also amended to allow DPC to proactively publish cabinet documents previously released under the FOI Act, including those released under the 10-year rule.

Stage 1 was completed on 15 April 2013, when the government published 28 of its own cabinet submissions from the year 2002 that were considered to be of interest to the public. These cabinet submissions related to things like Peter Lewis' compact, the Murray-Darling Basin and major drought, and are available on the Department of the Premier and Cabinet website.

South Australia is the first jurisdiction in Australia to publish, in full, cabinet submissions of a sitting government on a website for all members of the public to access—the first jurisdiction in Australia to do so. Each year a selection of 10-year-old cabinet submissions will be published online.

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway: This isn't what I asked.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: The question was around transparency—

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway: The question was about the Premier's announcement about—

The PRESIDENT: Order! You've asked your question.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: —and that's the very issue I am going to. The very issue I am going to is the level of transparency this government is prepared to show—unlike the former Liberal government that was not prepared to put any of these measures in place whatsoever. Other cabinet submissions that have already been released through FOI will also be published as resources permit.

This type of disclosure is scheduled to occur again in 2014, and preparations have commenced on cabinet submissions from the year 2003 with the intention of publishing significantly more than the 28 published this year. Stage 2, updating the Citizens' Right to Information Charter, was put on hold while consideration was being given to the possibility of a broader statement or declaration as part of the accountable government's project.

The implementation of stage 3, improving information statements, is mandated by the FOI Act. It began in May 2013 and is to be completed as part of the agency's annual reporting for FOI. This will assist members of the public to better understand the information held by agencies and how to access that.

The first part of stage 4 was approved by cabinet initially on 29 April 2013, with the policy approved on 2 September 2013. The first part of stage 4 requires state government portfolio agencies to proactively publish on their websites selected information relating to the expenditure of other details of ministers and chief executives, including their mobile phone and credit card usage, hospitality, entertainment and overseas travel expenses, certain procurement policies, and expenditure on consultants. I have also been advised that the Premier's Circular 035, re disclosure of regularly requested information, is publicly available on dpc.sa.gov.au.

The policy, in relation to stage 4, requires portfolio agencies to publish information from 1 July 2013 as soon as practicable, and in any case before the end of September 2013, with most of the information to be published on a monthly basis. Stage 5 is a longer term initiative, since its implementation is likely to require amendments to the Freedom of Information Act and possibly other legislation. However, parts of stage 5 will be implemented, if that is possible to do so.

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