Questions On Notice

Questions on Notice
Senators may, at any time, address written questions on notice to ministers and other senators. As soon as practicable, questions are forwarded to the appropriate ministers’ offices and to the relevant departments where replies are drafted for consideration by the minister. When a reply is approved by the minister it is delivered to the senator who asked the question and both question and reply are printed in Hansard.

Questions without Notice
Question time in the Senate is scheduled to begin at 2.00 p.m. on each sitting day and usually continues for an hour. The President asks if there are any questions without notice and senators wishing to ask questions rise in their places. After the question has been asked the President calls on the appropriate minister to answer.

Question on notice on ABC coverage – response

Question | Spokesperson Bob Brown
Monday 1st March 2010, 12:07pm
in

Senator Bob Brown (Tasmania) asked the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, upon notice, on 17 November 2009:


For 2009 in Tasmania, how much Australian Broadcasting Corporation television and radio news time and other coverage was given to the annual state conferences of the:


(a)Australian Labor Party;
(b)the Liberal Party of Australia; and
(c)the Australian Greens.


Senator Conroy (Victoria) (Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) -The answer to the honourable senator's question is as follows:


(a)Two television stories, 10 radio stories;
(b)Two television stories, 15 radio stories; and
(c)One television story, 4 radio stories
The Australian Greens' conference was held over one day, while the Labor and Liberal Parties' conferences were held over two days.


 Read on ParlInfo

Land for Telecommunications

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Thursday 25th February 2010, 7:25pm
in

(Question No. 2414)
Senator Ludlam asked the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, upon notice, on 16 November 2009:
Has a land acquisition activity notice ever been issued by a telecommunications carrier under the Telecommunications Act 1997 on a private residential dwelling in Australia; if so: (a) where; and (b) when.

Veterans’ Affairs: Clarke Review

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Thursday 25th February 2010, 7:20pm
in

(Question No. 2497)
Senator Ludlam asked the Minister representing the Minister for Veterans' Affairs, upon notice, on 21 December 2009:

(1) With reference to the review announced on 9 September 2008 to revisit the Clarke Review recommendations which were rejected by the then Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, has it reported; if not, when will this review be completed.

Defence: Pine Gap

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Thursday 25th February 2010, 7:14pm
in

(Question No. 2495)
Senator Ludlam asked the Minister for Defence, upon notice, on 11 December 2009:
(1) Can the Minister confirm that deployment of elements of the United States of America's missile defence system is progressing at Pine Gap.

(2) What steps have been taken toward replacement of the Defence Support Program satellite system with a Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS).

Radiofrequency Spectrum

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Thursday 25th February 2010, 7:12pm
in

Radiofrequency Spectrum
(Question No. 2494)
Senator Ludlam asked the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, upon notice, on 11 December 2009:

(1) With reference to Very High Frequency (VHF) radio frequency regulation: Can a self-regulatory system be supported by the expansion of the radio class licence system.

(2) How does the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) and its responsibility to promote self-regulation apply to the operation of the Citizen Band Radio Service (CBRS) which operates on the Ultra High Frequency (UHF) waveband.

Question on Nuclear Waste Dump

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Tuesday 23rd February 2010, 3:50pm
in

Senator LUDLAM (2.26 pm)-Mr President, my question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Resources and Energy, Senator Carr. Today Minister Martin Ferguson announced that fairness had been restored to the process for selecting a national radioactive waste dump site. Can the minister confirm that the nomination of Muckaty Station as a site for the dump was only possible under the Radioactive Waste Management Legislation Amendment Act 2006, which the ALP opposed and described at the time as a major attack on the rights of traditional owners and an abuse of power? How can the government continue to progress the nomination of Muckaty while claiming to repeal the act that made it possible?

Green Loans Scheme debacle - Question Time

Question | Spokesperson Christine Milne
Wednesday 3rd February 2010, 9:04pm
in

Senator MILNE (2.23 pm)-My question is to the minister representing the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Senator Wong. Can the minister confirm that the government promised to limit the number of home sustainability assessors accredited to conduct its Green Loans Program to between 1,000 and 2,000 to ensure sustainable work would be available to each of them? Given that so many people invested thousands of dollars in undertaking training and establishing small businesses on the basis of that promise, can the minister now explain why the government has allowed 5,000 assessors to be trained and accredited with a further 5,000 trained and awaiting accreditation, destroying job security and undermining the viability of many businesses?

ASNO

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Thursday 14th January 2010, 11:22pm
in

Senator Ludlam

A. Has ASNO been requested by the WA government to provide briefings or information or any kind of support, formally or informally, regarding safeguard to non-proliferation measures, given that there is a proposition to introduce uranium mining in WA?

B. Are you in regular contact with the relevant departments in the WA government or was that a one-off event?

Tibet

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Thursday 14th January 2010, 10:58pm
in

Question No. 14  

Page: 47-48

Senator Ludlam

A. Was advice sought from DFAT on the advisability of meeting with His Holiness the Dalai Lama later this year?

B. Do the Chinese object in those dialogues to the stance taken by Australia on what they term the ‘territorial integrity of China'? Are we asked to back off on issues such as autonomy for Tibet?

Answer

A. DFAT provided advice to the Minister for Foreign Affairs on the Dalai Lama's visit to Australia.

B. China's view, as put to Australia, is that both countries should respect and accommodate each other's core interests and major concerns so as to safeguard the overall interests of bilateral cooperation. The Tibet issue is one such concern for China. The position of successive Australian governments since 1972 has been to respect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, including over Tibet.

 

Human rights abuses in Burma

Question | Spokesperson Scott Ludlam
Tuesday 12th January 2010, 12:00am
in

Senator Ludlam

Can the department advise what information gathering is undertaken on human rights abuses in Burma, past and present? What do we actually do to inform ourselves?

Answer:

The department informs itself about human rights abuses in Burma from a range of sources. The department monitors open source material, including from the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar/Burma, and other United Nations specialist bodies. The department also consults international non-government organisations focusing on human rights issues, as well as Burmese community groups in Australia.

The Australian Embassy in Rangoon gathers information from sources inside Burma, and the Australian Embassy in Bangkok also monitors the situation on the Thai-Burma border.