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Parliamentary Questions


Question Without Notice No. 57 asked in the Legislative Assembly on 11 May 2021 by Mr P.J. Rundle

Parliament: 41 Session: 1

GAMING AND WAGERING COMMISSION — CHAIR — DUNCAN ORD

57. Mr P.J. RUNDLE to the Premier:

I refer to the Gaming and Wagering Commission of Western Australia 2016–17 annual report in which it is stated that chairman Barry Sargeant was stood down from this role as a result of the Labor government's machinery-of-government changes.

(1) Was it wise to replace Barry Sargeant, a person with 25 years of gaming regulation experience, with someone who has no previous experience in gaming regulation?

(2) Was training or support offered to the incoming chair to equip him with the skills required for this complex role?

Mr M. McGOWAN replied:

(1)–(2) I vaguely recall the events at that point in time. In mid-2017, the government went through the machinery-of-government changes. At that time, when we came to office, there were 41 government departments in Western Australia—more than any state or territory in Australia. As I said on the radio this morning, Victoria has eight departments. Jeff Kennett reduced a few score down to eight, and that has continued ever since the Kennett government. New South Wales has 15 or 17 or thereabouts, Queensland has around 22 or thereabouts, and so on across Australia.

The Western Australian government took action on this, which was well overdue, and reduced the number of government departments from 41 down to 25. The reason behind that was to develop synergies between agencies with things in common and also to reduce red tape and have less investment in bureaucracy, if you like, and more investment in delivery. That was the reason behind the reform that we put in. As I said, that reform was not as stark as reforms in Victoria or other states, but it was still significant. There was a 40 per cent reduction in the number of government departments.

When we did that, of course, there were then fewer opportunities for people in director general or CEO roles. My recollection at the time is that Barry Sargeant, who I am quite fond of and who was a DG back in the 2000s when we did the small bar reforms, decided of his own accord that he did not want to be—he elected not to be, sorry. It is not that he did not want to be, but he elected not to be the director general of the new agency. That was his choice at that time. He suggested to me that Duncan Ord was the appropriate person to undertake that role. I listened to Mr Sargeant's advice, I listened to the advice of the minister at the time—I think the member for Mandurah was the relevant minister—and I appointed Mr Ord to the role. He is a highly respected public servant in Western Australia and he is well liked. I think he was a director general when the Liberals and Nationals were in office. He assumed the role.

Obviously, we recently called the Perth Casino Royal Commission that will look into all these issues. I am not going to pre-empt the outcomes of the royal commission.