The hefty, rising power bill at Parliament House

Keeping the lights on in the halls of power doesn't come cheap, and we have the figures thanks to a lengthy question on notice from Senator Lidia Thorpe that covered everything from the price of flag repair, to electricity bills, to how many bin liners the building goes through each year.

According to the response from the President of the Senate, Parliament House consumed 89,582 gigajoules of power in the 2022-23 financial year, and paid more than $3.8 million for it.

This isn't the most they've had to spend on power in recent years. Electricity costs have gradually increased over the last five years, but peaked in 2021-22 at $3,869,723.

As for gas usage, both the consumption and price hit a high in 2022-23, costing almost $1.8 million for more than 66,000 gigajoules of gas.

Parliament uses ActewAGL as its energy provider, with the Senate President noting that this energy retailer "is Climate Active carbon neutral certified and is committed to net zero emissions".

The building also has a 43kW photovoltaic system made up of 234 solar panels that was installed in the Senate wing of the Parliament House and gardeners' compound in 2011. The Department of Parliamentary Services is exploring whether to expand the existing system or investing in a solar farm, depending on which options is best value for money.

The building is currently undergoing several other projects to make it more energy efficient. This includes upgrading approximately 50 air handling units, 2000 fan controllers, and 35 fan coil units, and switching to more energy efficient exhaust fans. Fluorescent lighting is also being replaced by LED lighting that uses 60 per cent less energy.

In terms of other costs in the building, we learnt that it takes approximately $37,000 including GST every year to supply and repair the flags flown at the top of Parliament House. No costings have been done to find out how much it would take to place Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags there.

As for how many bin liners the building goes through, the response revealed that Parliament uses approximately 500,000 per year. DPS is looking into using biodegradable liners instead.

It is also exploring options for supplying the various office suites in the building with waste and recycling bins "without creating a cluttered work space", with the response noting elsewhere that 47.8 per cent of waste in the building was diverted from landfill in the 2022-23 financial year.

The only question remaining is how much it cost to put together this list. We think: priceless.

They say that it's not the gift that counts, but the thought behind it.

And in the case of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, the gift you receive is a direct reflection of how important you're thought to be.

A tender notice for the provision of government gifts was published last week, calling for a supplier who has the "capability and capacity to supply a range of uniquely Australian gifts" that officials can give away.

Read the full story here.

Speaking of PM&C, the department revealed last week that Grant Hehir would resign as Auditor-General, effective from February 15.

Department secretary Glyn Davis wrote in a statement that he "had the pleasure of working of Mr Hehir for many years, in both his current and previous roles, and greatly value his advice and expertise".

Mr Hehir has served in the role since 2015 and, over the years, has built a reputation as someone unafraid to call it as it is.

In a forward to last year's annual audit office report, Mr Hehir called out the multiple instances where government entities had failed to meet ethical standards, kept poor records, and knowingly breached procurement and grant rules.

"Not consistently meeting requirements raises questions of whether compliance with them and their intent is embedded as part of public sector culture," Mr Hehir wrote at the time.

He tore apart then-Home Affairs' secretary Michael Pezzullo's defence against a scathing audit report at last March's estimates, and has previously spoken out against government funding cuts to his office.

As for when Mr Hehir will be replaced, and by whom, Public Eye garnered few answers from the department.

In response to our questions, a spokesperson simply replied: "a new Auditor-General appointment will be made in due course, consistent with the Auditor-General Act 1997".

The Australian Services Union - which represents 1100 Tax Office staff - has referred a dispute over the "inadequacy" of the ATO's pay proposal to the Fair Work Commission, demanding that the Tax Office up its pay offer by 6.12 per cent over three years.

The referral could prime Fair Work to step in and arbitrate on the union's pay claim under intractable bargaining dispute provisions, should the majority of staff vote down the Tax Office's pay proposal.

In an email to staff last week, ASU branch secretary Jeff Lapidos said the union wants the ATO to compensate staff for three years' of annual salary increases they missed out on when they voted "no" multiple times to the Coalition government's workplace agreements between 2014 and 2017.

"This is equal to two per cent compounding for each year between July 1, 2014 and June 30, 2017, a total of 6.12 per cent," Mr Lapidos wrote.

The union is also calling for further lump sum payments "equal to the salary forgone as a result of the three year delay in making the 2017 ATO Enterprise Agreement."

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Mr Lapidos encouraged union members to reject the current pay proposal when it goes to a vote in late February.

A majority "no" vote could prove difficult, though, given that the Community and Public Sector Union has recommended members accept the government's APS-wide package.

"The ASU's leadership asks each of our members in the ATO to discuss the ATO's inadequate pay proposal with their friends in the ATO and point out to them we have a choice. We do not have to accept the ATO pay proposal," Mr Lapidos wrote.

"... I am confident that with your support and the support of ATO employees across the board that we will be able to achieve a better pay outcome that will be good for all ATO staff, the Office itself and for Australia".