Opposition Leader Bryan Green says the government’s approach to a Parliamentary energy inquiry is “getting ridiculous”, with certain questions still off limits ahead of Tuesday’s rescheduled hearing.
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Energy Minister Matthew Groom and Treasurer Peter Gutwein will give evidence at a Public Accounts Committee hearing on Tuesday, just over three weeks after they pulled out of their initial hearing following legal advice.
The government and PAC have come to agreement about what evidence will be heard publicly and what will be in camera, with details of contractual dealings between Hydro Tasmania and Basslink to be kept private.
Mr Green said the government was attempting to “shut down” the committee into the state’s recent energy crisis.
“Remember it was Matthew Groom who got up in Parliament when he needed to protect himself to say there will be questions that need to be answered and we will have a committee so those questions can be answered,” Mr Green said.
“Now we’ve got a situation where they’re hiding behind legal arguments and they’re also trying to suggest that normal documentation between ministers that didn’t go to cabinet should not be provided to the committee because it’s somehow cabinet in confidence.”
Franklin Greens MHA Rosalie Woodruff said Mr Groom could not hide behind commercial in confidence any longer, and said Tasmanians could not have confidence in him if he continued to “duck and weave and hide from the questions people want answers to”.
“The Public Accounts Committee needs to scrutinise the minister and ask him why he’s prioritised the moneymaking of the [government business enterprises] over the energy security of Tasmanians,” she said.
Mr Groom said the hearing would allow the government to “clearly outline the facts” of the recent energy crisis and highlight the Opposition’s false claims.
“The fact is, our energy supply plan worked. We kept the lights on. We supported our major employers and the regulated price of electricity didn’t increase as a consequence of the failure of Basslink,” Mr Groom said.
“Labor, and in particular Bryan Green, are on the record making all sorts of wild claims… all of these claims are clearly wrong and at the inquiry hearing tomorrow we will make sure the facts are on the record.”
