Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee, , 8:21:15 to 8:27:03
Senators probe the timeline of when the cost reassessment letter and supporting documents were provided to the Minister and the department.
Topics: Snowy Hydro, Integrity, Government spending
Speakers: Dean Smith, Linda McGrath, Dennis Barnes, Unknown Speaker, Varun Ghosh, Ms Linda McGrath
So the letter to the minister from Snowy Hydro on what date was that sent?
>> The 30th of September.
>> The 30th of September as well as the cost. So the cost assessment report was sent to the department on the 30th of September.
>> There's there's no such thing as a single cost assessment.
>> Cost assessment report documentation. Yes. Yes. was sent to the department on the 30th of September and a letter was sent to the minister on the 30th of September.
>> Correct.
>> Senator, if I can just clarify, we received a copy of the letter >> as a department, not separate. >> The letter was provided to us as well as to
>> Okay. So on the 30th of September, the department receives from Snowy Hydori the cost assessment report documentation
and a letter. We received uh the the letter with the attachment as been outlined.
>> Right. >> But I got the strong impression from Mr. Barnes that the minister has seen the
>> Yes, that's what I what I'm saying. The letter um that that Mr. Barnes has just described was provided to the department also. So we got the same same information.
>> Okay. Okay. So, so Minister Bowen and the department have both seen the same letter.
>> Yes, we received a copy of the correspondence that went to the ministers.
The letter that went the correspondence that went to Minister Bowen, were there attachments or supplementary information provided to him in addition to the correspondence or with the correspondence that were sent to him on
executive summary of the work that was in the range of attachments that provided to the departments.
>> And the executive summary was a summary of what was it? The summary of the cost reassessment report documentation. It
was a mainly in a an executive summary of the work that had been completed and how that had led us to recommend the forecast cost to complete that was in the letter.
>> And the work that was completed that is the three broad items that you mentioned previously in your evidence to this committee. summarizing those three elements, the contractor's forecasts which you did not have a high degree of confidence in. So the shadow forecasts I think was how you might have described it Miss Barnes. And the third element of that was um uh an advisory
>> a process assurance.
it's fair to say then that Minister Bowen has an executive summary visibility of the cost assessment report documentation.
I >> mean I can't comment what happens when it's received by departments but the letter had an executive summary of the work that had been committed.
>> No. So, so, so, but just so we're clear, department gets correspondence with attachments. The department has got a copy of what was sent to the minister. So, there are two sets of eyes over this same letter and supporting material. That's the minister in his office and that's the department. Correct, Miss
>> Yes. And uh if I can just clarify. So yes, we received the same correspondence that the minister received with the um what Mr. Vances described as the executive summary. U my colleagues just reminded me we also received some additional information that did not go to ministers. That was just um additional contextual information to support us um to understand the detail
>> and that was all provided on the 30th of
The date the do you know the date
>> Matthew mentioned branch head uh the additional contextual information was provided on the uh 1st of October I understand
>> 1st of October. So additional contextual information is different from the executive summary that was provided by Snowy Hydro attached to the correspondence to the minister. >> Yes. So you provided some contextual information to the minister on the 1st
>> Senator, if I can clarify, it was additional contextual information provided to the department by Snowy Hydro to support our understanding and and eventually to support our advice to government. It wasn't provided to ministers.
>> And then that so so Snowy Hydro sends that to you on the 1st of September.
>> 1st of October.
>> 1st of October. Um and then that was conveyed to the minister's office.
>> It has not been conveyed.
>> Not been conveyed
>> that I'm aware. No, >> not not not by us. Not not in the form we receive.
>> Have you conveyed that contextual summary that Mr. Barnes, have you conveyed that contextual summary that was provided to the department on the 1st of October to Minister Bowen's office? No,
>> In a moment. Do you have some final questions?
>> not for the moment. Thank you.
>> Okay. Thank you, Senator Pok.