Chapter 1Overview
1.1The Senate Economics Legislation Committee (the committee) is responsible for examining the expenditure and outcomes of the Treasury Portfolio and the Industry, Science and Resources Portfolio (Industry Portfolio).
Documents Referred
1.2On 4 February 2025, the Senate referred the following documents to legislation committees for examination:
Particulars of proposed additional expenditure in respect of the year ending on 30 June 2025 [Appropriation Bill (No. 3) 2024-2025];
Particulars of certain proposed additional expenditure in respect of the year ending on 30 June 2025 [Appropriation Bill (No. 4) 2024-2025]; and
Particulars of proposed additional expenditure in relation to the parliamentary departments in respect of the year ending on 30 June 2025 [Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 2) 2024-2025].
Additional Estimates Hearings
1.3To facilitate the examination, the Senate set 26–27 February 2025 as the dates for the committee to hold its 2024-25 Additional Estimates hearings, with all of the first day and part of the second day (until 11:40am) set aside for the Treasury Portfolio, and part of the second day (from 11:40am) for the Industry portfolio.
1.4The agencies that appeared before the committee are included in Chapter 2. Housing Australia, the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman were scheduled to appear on 26February 2025, but were released by the committee without questions. TheProductivity Commission, Office of Industry Innovation and Science Australia, the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, and Geoscience Australia were scheduled to appear on 27 February 2025, but were also released by the committee without questions.
1.5Evidence was provided at the hearings by the following Ministers:
Senator the Hon Katy Gallagher, representing the Treasurer; and
Senator the Hon Tim Ayres, representing first the Treasurer, and in turn representing the Minister for Industry and Science and the Minister for Resources.
1.6Evidence was also provided by senior executive officers of the Treasury Portfolio, led by the Secretary, Dr Steven Kennedy PSM, as well as senior executive officers of the Industry Portfolio, led by Secretary, Ms Meghan Quinn PSM.
1.7At the invitation of the committee, Mr Andrew Hauser, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, provided evidence at the second day of hearings on Thursday, 27 February 2025.
1.8The committee thanks the Ministers and officers who provided evidence and support for the committee’s Estimates hearings.
1.9A verbatim record of the committee’s hearings was made by Hansard and is accessible on the committee’s estimates webpage. References in this report are to the proof Committee Hansard.
1.10A list of the documents tabled during the committee’s hearings is available at Appendix 1. Tabled documents are published on the committee’s estimates webpage.
Public Interest Immunity Claims
1.11On 13 May 2009, the Senate passed an order relating to Public Interest Immunity (PII) claims. The order sets out the processes to be followed if a witness declines to answer a question. The full text of this order has previously been provided to departments and agencies and was incorporated in the Chair’s opening statement at the commencement of each hearing.
1.12The committee notes that no PII claims were made over the course of the two days.
Questions on Notice
1.13In accordance with Standing Order 26(9)(a), the committee fixed 24 March 2025 as the date for receipt of answers to Questions on Notice (QoNs).
1.14Responses to QoNs and additional information provided to the committee are tabled in the Senate and uploaded to the committee's estimates webpage as they become available.
1.15As the committee is required to report to the Senate before responses to questions are due, this report has been prepared without reference to any answers to QoNs.
Report Structure
1.16The Senate determined that the committee would report on its considerations of the 2024–25 Additional Estimates hearings on 25 March 2025.
1.17This report is structured as follows:
Chapter 1 – an overview of the committee’s hearings;
Chapter 2 – on the key issues considered by the committee during the hearings; and
Appendix 1 – the documents tabled during the committee’s hearings.
1.18This report does not seek to comprehensively analyse the evidence provided to the committee. Rather, the report is intended to inform the Senate of the key issues considered by the committee in the hearings.