Electricity Industry Privatisation

Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: My question is directed to the Premier. Given that he supported this Chamber's 1994 insistence that the Auditor-General provide a report to Parliament before the half billion dollar sale of the State Bank, why is he refusing to allow the Auditor-General to do a similar report before the $15 billion sale of the State's electricity industry?

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: We have not. The Auditor-General has wide-ranging powers, and can do so. The Leader of the Opposition, who mistakes invisibility for leadership, has latched onto his press release, issued in the dying moments of sittings last week, after being tied up and not able to state a position on one of the biggest issues that confronts the State.

The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: And now he is hanging onto the five points. By the way, we addressed the five points while he was asleep. He now thinks he has some sort of credibility on this issue. Let me recount the situation for the Chamber, because we are going to keep reminding the Leader of the Opposition of it every single day.

The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: The Government has been consistent in stating that legislation is required. It has commented also on the type of legislation. There is enabling legislation as far as the transactions are concerned. There is enabling legislation also in the treatment of employees. I underline that because 12 months ago the Leader of the Opposition said in this Chamber, "I've got an idea. I've stolen it from Peter Beattie, but it is an idea nevertheless. I am going to sell retail electricity." He said in relation to workers "Mmm, we should take them into consideration." This Government does the hard yards and states a policy. It has given the Leader of the Opposition plenty of the details of it, for example, what will happen to employees. There is enabling legislation for the transfer of workers. The Government has outlined the circumstances under which that will happen.

Mrs Jillian Skinner: What about the Auditor-General?

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: Yes, we have addressed the auditor and we will continue to address the auditor. The third part, as the Leader of the Opposition is talking about legislation, is legislation regarding price regulation. There is enabling legislation for the transactions, there is enabling legislation to allow for the transfer of workers, there is legislation regarding prices and there is legislation regarding environmental benefits of our policy.

The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: That is what the legislation will include. As the Leader of the Opposition knows, the Government has no difficulty whatsoever with the Auditor-General being involved in the process to whatever extent he wants. He has a role and he will carry it out, and he will do so with the support of the Government. The Leader of the Opposition should not stand up in this place and try to parade his lack of credibility about oversight bodies. He is the one who, one month ago, launched an extraordinary attack on the Independent Commission Against Corruption commissioner. The Leader of the Opposition said that the commissioner had no credibility and could not do his job. However, he does not have the courage to go to his office, look him in the eye and tell him that he thinks he is hopeless! The Leader of the Opposition should not lecture us about support for oversight bodies.

The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of the Opposition will cease interjecting.

Mr Barry O'Farrell: What about the Auditor-General?

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: Exactly, the Auditor-General. This Government will support whatever involvement he wishes to have but that does not detract from the simple fact that whether it is water, transport, electricity or energy, the Leader of the Opposition simply goes missing in action when it comes to crafting a policy prescription that addresses the key issues for this State. Electricity is just the latest example.

The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of the Opposition will cease interjecting.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: Sitting next to the Leader of the Opposition is the man who said he would rather see Sydney turn into the Sahara before he pushed the button on a desalination plant. The Leader of the Opposition is the one who went to the last election unable to cost his former leader's policies because "the photocopier broke down". He is the one who refused to sign up to the budget honesty process. He is the one who refused to submit his costings to Treasury to have them independently costed.

The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: He is the one who had to pull his transport forum in the week in the lead-up to the election because he did not have a policy. Twelve months later the Leader of the Opposition still has not been able to devise a transport policy, except the one paragraph from Bret Walker, special commissioner, that states that we should have a transport coordination authority. The Leader of the Opposition cobbled that together, he conned a few people in the gallery that that was a new policy—got a run for it for one day—and that is it. Twelve months later the man who ached to be Leader of the Opposition, the man who was always the first one straight after an electoral defeat to have an analysis as to why the Coalition failed and the man who always said, "If only they'd give me the job, I could do so much better" has no transport, water, infrastructure or energy policies, except to steal Peter Beattie's policy. He has then pretended for one year that he did not have that position. He has spent the last fortnight not knowing what he would say until the member for Manly got seven of his team together after a breakfast and paid him a visit.

Mr Andrew Fraser: Point of order: It is obvious that the Premier is debating the issue. He should either answer the question as to whether the Auditor-General will report to Parliament before the process or sit down.

The SPEAKER: Order! I have heard enough of the point of order. I will listen further to the Premier.

Mr MORRIS IEMMA: As tempted as I am to repeat the words of Mike Carlton from last week, I will not.