Page 626 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 23 March 1993
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QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
Quarterly Financial Statement
MR KAINE: I would like to direct a question to the Chief Minister and Treasurer. Chief Minister, we are now almost at the end of the third quarter of this current fiscal year. Will you indicate when you will be publishing the quarterly financial report for the period ended 31 December, as required under the Audit Act?
MS FOLLETT: Madam Speaker, I thank Mr Kaine for the question. It is becoming a bit of a perennial. I can advise Mr Kaine that that report went across my desk yesterday and it will be published as quickly as it possibly can be. It is normal for that report to be published as a Special Gazette and members will be provided with a copy as a courtesy, as is usually the case.
MR KAINE: I have a supplementary question, Madam Speaker. As the Chief Minister noted, this is more than a perennial. It happens every quarter. I wonder how the Chief Minister defines the words "as soon as possible" in the Audit Act. Is that three months, or six months, or nine months, or whenever the Leader of the Opposition asks for it?
MS FOLLETT: The Act itself does not define that, Madam Speaker. It is done as promptly and as efficiently as Treasury resources allow.
Laboratory Assistants - Industrial Dispute
MS ELLIS: My question is directed to the Minister for Education and Training. Can the Minister advise the Assembly of the current situation regarding the laboratory assistants dispute?
MR WOOD: Madam Speaker, there has been a dispute for some time - far too long, I say - concerning laboratory assistants, with the effect that practical science classes have been quite severely disrupted in some of our high schools and colleges. I might point out that not all high schools and colleges are affected. There is now a process under way to resolve the dispute. Despite the offers that the department had made, it became apparent that there was not going to be an agreement between the union and the department, so a dispute was lodged with the commission. That was heard, first up, last Thursday, and is due to come before the commission again on 1 April. That formal dispute resolution process is under way. As part of the commissioner's statement, he strongly urged the union to consider lifting the bans. Therefore I was delighted to hear on radio this morning that the union said that they would lift the bans. Unfortunately, that was not quite an accurate statement because the lifting of the bans remains conditional on certain things - conditions that I do not know that we can meet and that should not have been imposed, in my view, ahead of that process getting under way on 1 April. I am quite disappointed that in the period between now and 1 April the bans are not lifted. Students are being affected quite considerably by this time, and that is highly unfortunate. I am sure that we all, including the laboratory assistants, who are fine and honourable people, would want to look after the welfare of students. I hope that they will review the advice they have given to the department this morning and that they will lift the bans ahead of that process. The only place that that process can occur is in the Industrial Relations Commission.
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