Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

The Minister for Veterans' Affairs has provided the following answer to the honourable senator's question:

(1) From 14 September 2010 to 28 February 2011 the total amount expended on publications was $1,258.56. Expenditure on stationery is recorded by the Department under a single account code and it would be too resource intensive to identify what proportion was attributed to the Office of the Minister for Veterans' Affairs.

(2) The Minister's Office does not use printed letterhead and instead prints the letter template straight onto blank paper. As expenditure for blank paper supplied by the Department is recorded under a single account code, it would be too resource intensive to identify what proportion was attributed to the Minister's Office.

(3) Until mid-January 2011 the Minister's Office used 50% recycled copy paper that is 80 GSM for correspondence from the Minister for Veterans' Affairs. From mid-January to date the Office has used a paper that is 110 GSM. This was used to exhaust stocks that the Department of Defence had provided to the Office. The Office will shortly transition to a new paper that is 104 GSM.

(4) The 80 GSM and the 110 GSM papers used for ministerial responses were not carbon neutral. The 104 GSM paper that the Office will transition to shortly is carbon neutral.