Page 2273 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 12 August 2014
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network is in many ways a structure that is there for accountability measures and has been imposed on us by the federal government as part of some health reforms a while back rather than any necessarily coherent structure that has been developed as part of the health system. Rather than trying to have two bites of the cherry—and I think the Chief Minister and health minister will be most relieved—we will wait until we get to the Health line. I will give a view of it there.
Proposed expenditure agreed to.
ACTEW Corporation—
Schedule 1, Part 1.4—$428,000 (net cost of outputs), totalling $428,000.
Schedule 1A, Part 1.4—$10,695,000 (net cost of outputs), totalling $10,695,000.
MR SMYTH (Brindabella) (10.47): We had a fascinating discussion with ACTEW, and we welcomed the new CEO to his first estimates in that position. A large amount of the discussion rested on the growing debt ACTEW have and their ability to pay it. There are a number of recommendations in the report, including recommendation 57, that the government detail to the Legislative Assembly the government’s time frame for the repayment of debt held by ACTEW Corporation. This was noted by the government, and we are simply referred to the budget papers.
Recommendation 58 is that following the agreement of a debt strategy by the ACTEW Corporation board the ACT government inform the Legislative Assembly of the strategy within four sitting days of the conclusion of the agreement. The government’s response is:
Noted.
The level of information that can be provided in relation to the debt strategy will be determined by the ACTEW Board depending on relevant commercial considerations.
The third recommendation is that following any resolution of the ActewAGL debt facility the shareholders detail to the Assembly the effect of such decision. The response is:
Noted.
The level of information to be provided regarding the establishment of a new debt facility for ActewAGL and its impact on ACTEW Corporation will depend on relevant commercial considerations.
A large amount of the debt the government carries is through things like ACTEW, and when we see the debt over the life of this budget grow to $4.7 billion with attendant interest payments, there should be some concern. What we do not seem to get from the government in answers to the recommendations from the committee or, indeed, in the discussion with ACTEW officials is a clear picture of how the debt will be repaid. They said they were happy with their gearing ratios; they felt they had a handle on it. But in the long term, if the government continues the policy of taking 100 per cent of the dividend, the ability for ACTEW to pay back that debt is severely constricted. Indeed one would question how they would do it.
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