Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee, , 8:03:57 to 8:07:44
Officials are questioned regarding the department's failure to comply with a Senate order for the production of Snowy Hydro cost documents.
Topics: Orders for documents, Snowy Hydro, Integrity
Speakers: Dean Smith, Linda McGrath, Unknown Speaker, Hon Murray Watt, Ms Linda McGrath
>> Thank you very much chair. On the 14th of October, the Senate agreed to the production of documents related to the snowy hydro project. The Senate agreed. So 39 plus senators agreed that the cost reassessment report should be made available to the Senate and the date for the delivery of that order for the production of documents was today at 12 noon. Minister, can you give me an update in regards to when that document when that order of the Senate will be complied with?
>> Uh I might get one of the officials to answer that. Senator Smith,
>> V McGra, head of division, National Energy Transformation Division. Um, it is an important request and we've been applying to
>> No, no, no, no, no. It is the Senate has agreed.
>> I know. I understand. That's what I'm
saying. >> So, you are currently not complying with an order of the Senate.
>> We are making our best efforts to do so. Um, but it's um we have not yet provided um our advice to the minister yet to facilitate the release. Uh part of that has been um obviously wanting to take uh to do take a thorough approach to the request and ensure that um we're capturing everything within scope and disclosing information as much as possible. Um I'm sure you can appreciate that over the last week the the team that um would assist with this has also been under multiple other pressures and we just um
>> comp of the Senate was not the priority task for the department when it came to meeting this particular requirement.
>> I would say it was certainly a priority priorities.
>> Just give me an indication miss. What is a more significant priority than meeting an order for the production of documents from the Senate which has been agreed to by 39 or more senators?
>> I say we're making every effort. It's
>> My question was what are those other
>> There have been multiple pri priorities as you will know with the um Snowy Hydro's um cost to complete review and other matters going on within
government. No, no, no. You, you're not understanding my question. Orders of the Senate are not comparable with other priorities. They are the priority. So, who made the decision? Yourself, the deputy secretary, and instruction from the minister's office that the order of the Senate would not be complied with as the priority.
It was a matter for the department and it was not um I would say not a conscious decision to depprioritize but rather um the scale managing the uh process to capture everything um and uh and to thoroughly go through it to make sure that u we were able to release uh the the elements contained within the documents um was just not able to be completed prior to today. And obviously we've we've all been in the room today and not able to progress it.
>> Is it near completion?
>> It is. Yes.
>> Uh is it completed but just not made available to the Senate?
>> Uh no that's not correct. It's not completed.
>> It's not completed. Is it 95% completed?
>> It's in the final stages of clearance within the department.
>> Uh so just give me an understanding of that. So that means it's 99% completed. 95% completed. Is it still on your desk? Is it on the deputy secretary's desk? Is it on the secretary's desk?
It's with the senior executive for final
>> And when can that be expected to be made available to the Senate minister?