My successful motion in March calling for the release of Tasmanian government Cabinet papers came to life today with news the disclosures will be uploaded monthly to the Department of Premier and Cabinet’s website.
The government resisted the disclosure, and I didn’t have this success without having to fight them for it.
Anyway, I’m proud of my achievement. It’s a gamechanger, delivering a level of transparency and accountability that Tasmanians wanted and needed.
It’s also a great example of how a minority parliament can lift standards of governance, transparency and accountability.
My motion required cabinet submissions and briefing papers be proactively released within 30 days of a final decision.
At its heart, this measure addresses a simple democratic principle: when governments make major decisions involving public money, public risk and public consequences, the public should be able to see the information that informed those decisions.
Tasmania is now the second State in Australia to introduce monthly disclosure of Cabinet documents, far exceeding the Federal Government’s 20-year disclosure policy.