[Peetwo]

AMSA spillover hearing: 25/03/24

Senator McDonald's recall of AMSA to Estimates in a spillover hearing seemed to be somewhat of a storm in a teacup. However the soon to be departing AMSA CEO Mr Kinley's attitude was very defensive, disrespectful and almost dismissive of Senator McDonald's line of questioning. Perhaps Kinley has reached his use by date?

Hansard quote:

Senator McDONALD: ..Mr Kinley, are you leaving us soon? Your contract has just been extended.

Mr Kinley : I will be finishing up at the end of September.

Senator McDONALD: Why did you do a three-month extension? What was the reason for that?

Mr Kinley : The board asked. That period of the year is end-of-year financial statements, all the things that happen at the end of the financial year. We have a relatively new chair, a relatively new chief operating officer, so I'm happy to stay and I agreed and the minister extended me for those three months. There's nothing sinister. I've been in the organisation 30 years and I'm very happy with what the organisation does. It's great.

Senator McDONALD: We've talked for an hour. I've skated across the surface of what I'm trying to unpack. I think that the ANAO, by being asked to do a procedural audit, have shortchanged both AMSA and the taxpayer by not doing a technical review of the tender process. I think this is a very big gap in the decision-making. My sense from your faces that you disregard my views on this matter, but like it or not I am a Senator for the country and I do have the right to make that recommendation, that a procedural review has not been an adequate way to assess whether or not this is the best use of taxpayers' money and whether or not the outcome will be the best for the nine regions.

I truly am disappointed you are so unhappy to be providing these answers. I was trying to get to the bottom of how this tender project has happened for a company that has been providing a high level of KPIs for over 20 years. Through an internal process there's been a series of issues that we have touched on that I think demonstrate some sense of bias. I think your lawyers have provided very good advice in your process, but the technical assessment I think has been an oversight by the minister and the ANAO not to have carried that out. I hope we don't find out—after you have departed, Mr Kinley, it will be somebody else's problem—that the cutting up of the country into these nine regions has resulted in lesser service or a lesser compliance.

CHAIR: I was going to say that I'll take that as a statement, but Mr Kinley, did you wish to answer that before we say sayonara?

Mr Kinley : All I will say is that, if there was any evidence of bias, any form of corruption or anything within this organisation, I would deal with it and I would refer it to the National Anti-Corruption Commission—

Senator McDONALD: I'm not suggesting corruption—

Mr Kinley : I have said the same to AMSG. They have legal recourse under the Commonwealth procurement (judicial review) legislation and they've chosen not to do that. They can refer people to the NACC if they think there is evidence of wrongdoing, but instead there are just random conspiracy theories being thrown around. I think it's just unfortunate that that is the route they have chosen to take—engaging with lobbyists and all the other things they're doing.

Senator McDONALD: I have not met with any lobbyist, you can be assured. As a representative for the country, I think these are not unreasonable questions. This is a contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Mr Kinley : And I am determined that we will get value for money for the punters who are paying for this. They're actually levy payers—I was going to say taxpayers. We take our responsibilities to deliver—

Courtesy ParlView, via Youtube:

Tabled Docs:  

Senator Susan McDonald Navigation Aid examples25 March 2024PDF - 141KB 
Senator Susan McDonald Aids to Navigation map 25 March 2024 PDF - 90KB 

Next update from NTSB investigation - 'Francis Scott Key Bridge struck by Cargo Ship Dali':

And B-roll videos of initial investigation:

MTF...P2