Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

The reason I referred to it as a trick question was because Senator Wong was asking me to provide a costing for a proposal that had not yet been developed and that was to be subject to full public consultation. In relation to implementation arrangements and the relevant technical details, all of these matters are fundamental to costing and are being conducted at the appropriate time. What I also said to Senator Wong and what I indicated to the Senate is that, consistent with usual practice, the government would seek to implement this proposal in the most efficient and most effective way possible—that is, at the lowest possible cost to achieve the objectives as outlined in the letter.

In terms of who is responsible for this, this is going to be a joint effort between Treasury and the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources. Essentially, it is going to be a joint effort between the Treasurer and the Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources with the support of their relevant departments, who will conduct the consultation and ultimately the development of the register of foreign ownership of water entitlements within 12 months.