Four in five budget estimates questions unanswered as deadline looms

More than four in five questions asked to government during budget estimates nearly six weeks ago are yet to be answered, with just one day left before the technical deadline.

MORE than four in five questions asked to government during budget estimates nearly six weeks ago are yet to be answered, with just one day left before the technical deadline.

Opposition and crossbench MLAs, whose numbers were boosted after the recent election, lodged a total of 227 questions on notice during budget estimates in December, 100 more than the year before.

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Estimates Committee chairman Joel Bowden, during the last sitting of parliament in 2020, said bureaucrats needed to lodge their answers by January 22, and those “not received by the due date cannot be accepted and published by the committee”, implying questions would simply go unanswered.

A budget estimates session in December 2020. Picture: Che Chorley

With just one day left before the January 22 deadline for answers, analysis by the NT Newsreveals only 42 questions, or 18.5 per cent, have been answered as of Wednesday morning.

Opposition Deputy Leader Gerard Maley blasted the government for diminishing the impact of the budget process and said it was “outrageous and unacceptable” that so many questions remained unanswered a day out from the government-nominated deadline.

However, a spokesman for the Chief Minister said the deadline was a Legislative Assembly technicality and the government “intend to provide the answers”.

He said the answers were being worked on and there was no rule that outlined a certain portion of responses needed to be published at certain intervals.

Estimates questions on notice yet to be answered include how much it cost to landscape the top of the State Square carpark, the number of youth offenders convicted in the last financial year and the turnover rate of staff at Jacana Energy.