Name: Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee (part 1 of 3)
Uploaded: 2026-10-25T21:50:00+00:00
Duration: 21600 s

11:54 - 15:26

Speaker 6

I open this hearing of the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee of the Senate into 2026-2027 budget estimates, and I begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which we meet and pay our respects to elders, past, present and emerging. At this point, I'd like to speak on behalf of the committee in sending our thoughts to our colleague the Member for Indi, Dr Helen Haines, MP, her family, her team and her community as she continues to recover in hospital. The attack against Dr Haines on Monday last week was horrific and I know that many including myself have come to this place distressed by that attack and also in shock at what has happened to our colleague and our friend, and Helen remains in all of our thoughts. Dr Haines is much loved as a colleague here, a strong advocate for her community in Indi, and as a robust, civil, and kind participant in our democracy. Contributions will be made in the House of Representatives today from 10:00 a.m. and the committee will suspend to enable senators to attend the first of these statements as a mark of respect for Dr Haines.

I do note that there are a number of matters under investigation by the Victorian Police, the Australian Federal Police, and ASIO, and I ask senators to please be mindful of this during hearings. Dr Haines is known to all of us as a person of integrity, of warmth, and I said before, and and of kindness, and someone who conducts public debate in a robust, but respectful manner. As chair, I will be taking this context for our hearings here today and tomorrow and I'm sure my fellow senators join with me in this spirit and with Dr Haines in our minds. The committee has fixed Thursday, 17 December 2026 as the date for the return of answers to questions on notice. Before I commence today's proceedings with the corporate matters and general questions of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, in an unusual move, we are in a position this morning to release the Australian Energy Infrastructure Commissioner from their attendance at estimates today, and they go with our thanks.

We now proceed to corporate matters and general questions of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water portfolio. Under standing order 26, the committee must take all evidence in public session and this includes answers to questions on notice. I remind all witnesses that in giving evidence to the committee they are protected by parliamentary privilege. It is unlawful for anyone to threaten or disadvantage a witness on account of evidence given to a committee, and such action may be treated by the Senate as a contempt. It is also a contempt to give false or misleading evidence to the Senate.

The Senate has endorsed the following test of relevance of questions at estimates hearings: any questions going to the operations or financial positions of the departments and agencies which are seeking funds in estimates are relevant questions for the purposes of estimates hearings. I remind officers that the Senate has resolved that there are no areas in connection with the expenditure of public funds where any person has a discretion to withhold details or explanations from the Parliament or its committees unless the Parliament has expressly provided otherwise. The Senate has resolved also that an officer of a department of the Commonwealth shall not be asked to give opinions on matters of policy and shall not and shall be given reasonable opportunity to refer questions asked to the officer to superior officers or to a minister. This resolution does not preclude questions asking for explanations of policies or factual questions about when or how policies were adopted.

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