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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA
Transparency in Government Bill 2015
TABLE OF PROVISIONS
Clause Page
Part 1--Preliminary 1
1 Purpose 1
2 Commencement 2
3 Definitions 2
4 Objective 5
Part 2--Response times 7
5 Meaning of response time 7
6 Minister to cause quarterly publication of response time data in
relation to ambulance services 8
7 Minister to cause quarterly publication of response time data in
relation to MFESB services 9
8 Minister to cause quarterly publication of response time data in
relation to CFA services 10
9 Quarterly reporting by emergency service unreasonable in case
of major emergency or capacity materially impacted 11
Part 3--Statement of priorities 14
Division 1--Publication of statement of priorities 14
10 Publication of statement of priorities--ambulance service 14
11 Publication of statement of priorities--public health service 15
12 Publication of statement of priorities--denominational hospital 17
Division 2--Quarterly reporting requirements 18
13 Public health service performance data quarterly reports 18
14 Denominational hospitals performance data quarterly reports 19
15 Quarterly reports in circumstances where statement of priorities
not agreed to--public health service 20
16 Quarterly reports in circumstances where statement of priorities
not agreed to--denominational hospital 21
17 Performance indicators against which performance to be
assessed for quarterly reporting purposes 22
Division 3--Exceptions to quarterly reporting requirements 24
18 Quarterly report not practical for excepted performance
indicators 24
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Clause Page
19 Quarterly reporting by public health service or denominational
hospital unreasonable in case of major emergency or capacity
materially impacted 25
Part 4--General 27
20 Information reporting periods and publication dates 27
21 Consolidation of reports and updates 27
22 Provision of additional information 28
Part 5--Regulations 29
23 Regulations 29
Part 6--Amendment of Ambulance Services Act 1986 31
24 When statement of priorities to be prepared 31
25 Repeal amending Part 31
═══════════════
Endnotes 32
1 General information 32
581068B.I-8/12/2015 ii BILL LA INTRODUCTION 8/12/2015
PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA
Introduced in the Assembly
Transparency in Government Bill 2015
A Bill for an Act to facilitate regular public reporting of performance
related data in relation to certain emergency and health services and to
ensure transparency in relation to the delivery of those services and
for other purposes.
The Parliament of Victoria enacts:
Part 1--Preliminary
1 Purpose
The purpose of this Act is--
(a) to facilitate regular public reporting of
5 performance related data in relation to
certain emergency and health services; and
(b) to ensure transparency in relation to the
delivery of those services.
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Part 1--Preliminary
2 Commencement
(1) Subject to subsection (2), this Act comes into
operation on a day or days to be proclaimed.
(2) If a provision of this Act does not come into
5 operation before 1 July 2016, it comes into
operation on that day.
3 Definitions
In this Act--
ambulance service has the same meaning as in the
10 Ambulance Services Act 1986;
appliance means--
(a) any firefighting or emergency response
vehicle that is used by--
(i) a member or operational employee
15 of the CFA; or
(ii) an operational staff member of the
MFESB; or
(b) any vehicle used by an operational staff
member of an ambulance service;
20 board of a public health service means a board of
directors established in respect of a public
health service under section 65S of the
Health Services Act 1988;
board of an ambulance service means a board
25 of directors established in respect of an
ambulance service under section 17 of the
Ambulance Services Act 1986;
call processing time means the time interval
commencing from when the Emergency
30 Services Telecommunications Authority
answers a call for emergency assistance to
the dispatch of an appliance of the relevant
emergency service;
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Part 1--Preliminary
CFA means the Country Fire Authority
established under the Country Fire
Authority Act 1958;
CFA services means services provided by the
5 CFA;
complex emergency incident means an
emergency incident prescribed for the
purposes of section 5(2)(b) and (3)(b);
Council has the same meaning as in the Local
10 Government Act 1989;
country area of Victoria has the same meaning as
in the Country Fire Authority Act 1958;
denominational hospital has the same meaning as
in the Health Services Act 1988;
15 emergency incident means a high priority incident
requiring time critical attendance by an
emergency service and includes any
emergency incident prescribed for the
purposes of this definition;
20 Emergency Management Victoria has the same
meaning as in the Emergency Management
Act 2013;
emergency service means any or all of the
following--
25 (a) an ambulance service;
(b) CFA;
(c) MFESB;
Emergency Services Telecommunications
Authority means the Emergency Services
30 Telecommunications Authority established
under section 5 of the Emergency Services
Telecommunications Authority Act 2004;
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Part 1--Preliminary
fire service means--
(a) CFA; or
(b) MFESB;
major emergency has the same meaning as in the
5 Emergency Management Act 2013;
metropolitan district has the same meaning as in
the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958;
MFESB means the Metropolitan Fire and
Emergency Services Board established under
10 the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958;
MFESB services means services provided by the
MFESB;
municipal district means the district under the
local government of a Council;
15 notification statement means a statement made
under section 10(2) or 11(2);
operational staff member, in relation to an
ambulance service, has the same meaning as
in the Ambulance Services Act 1986;
20 public health service has the same meaning as in
the Health Services Act 1988;
publication date means the date of publication
specified in column 2 of the table to
section 20(1) for a report prepared or
25 statement made in respect of a quarter
specified in column 1 of that table;
quarter means a period specified in column 1 of
the table to section 20(1);
response time has the meaning given by section 5;
30 rolling information period means the period
specified in section 20(2);
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Part 1--Preliminary
statement of priorities means any of the
following--
(a) in relation to an ambulance service, a
statement of priorities prepared under
5 section 22F of the Ambulance
Services Act 1986;
(b) in relation to a denominational hospital,
a statement of priorities prepared under
section 44A of the Health Services
10 Act 1988;
(c) in relation to a public health service, a
statement of priorities prepared under
section 65ZFA of the Health Services
Act 1988;
15 50th percentile, in relation to response times,
means the response time at or below which
50 per cent of emergency incidents are
responded to;
90th percentile, in relation to response times,
20 means the response time at or below which
90 per cent of emergency incidents are
responded to.
4 Objective
The objective of this Act is to facilitate
25 transparency in Government by--
(a) making information about performance that
is required by this Act readily and
continuously available to the public; and
(b) providing that information in easy to
30 understand, relevant and meaningful formats;
and
(c) encouraging the provision of additional
information in reports required under this
Act; and
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Part 1--Preliminary
(d) improving the accountability and
performance of certain emergency and health
services by enabling greater public scrutiny
based on the information provided under this
5 Act.
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Part 2--Response times
Part 2--Response times
5 Meaning of response time
(1) The response time, in relation to ambulance
services, means the time taken from receipt
5 of a call by the Emergency Services
Telecommunications Authority to the first
arrival at the scene of an emergency incident
by an operational staff member.
(2) The response time in relation to MFESB services
10 in the metropolitan district means the time taken
from receipt of a call by the Emergency Services
Telecommunications Authority to the arrival of--
(a) in the case of an emergency incident, the first
appliance at the scene of the emergency
15 incident; or
(b) in the case of a complex emergency incident,
the first prescribed appliance at the scene of
the emergency incident prescribed for the
purposes of this section as a complex
20 emergency incident.
(3) The response time in relation to CFA services in
the country area of Victoria means the time taken
from receipt of a call by the Emergency Services
Telecommunications Authority to the arrival of--
25 (a) in the case of an emergency incident, the first
appliance at the scene of the emergency
incident; or
(b) in the case of a complex emergency incident,
the first prescribed appliance at the scene of
30 the emergency incident prescribed for the
purposes of this section as a complex
emergency incident.
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Part 2--Response times
(4) The response times for an emergency incident
prescribed for the purposes of this section may
exclude the call processing time only if the
regulations provide for the exclusion of the call
5 processing time for an emergency incident of that
type.
6 Minister to cause quarterly publication of response
time data in relation to ambulance services
(1) Subject to subsection (2), the Minister
10 administering the Ambulance Services Act 1986
must cause a report to be prepared specifying--
(a) the 50th percentile response time by
municipal district for ambulance services in
the relevant rolling information period; and
15 (b) the 90th percentile response time by
municipal district for ambulance services in
the relevant rolling information period.
(2) If there are less than 10 incidents for any
emergency incident type in a municipal district
20 for the rolling information period, the report
under subsection (1) may specify the incident
response time for each incident instead of the
50th percentile response time and the
90th percentile response time.
25 (3) Subject to section 9, the Minister administering
the Ambulance Services Act 1986 must cause a
report prepared under this section to be published
by the publication date on a website managed and
administered by the relevant government
30 department.
(4) For the purposes of causing the preparation and
publication of a report under this section, the
Minister administering the Ambulance Services
Act 1986 may request a board of an ambulance
35 service--
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Part 2--Response times
(a) to give the Minister any relevant information
in any form specified by the Minister; and
(b) to provide assistance generally for the
purposes of preparing a report under this
5 section.
(5) A board of an ambulance service must comply
with any request made under subsection (4) by the
Minister administering the Ambulance Services
Act 1986.
10 7 Minister to cause quarterly publication of response
time data in relation to MFESB services
(1) Subject to subsection (2), the Minister
administering the Metropolitan Fire Brigades
Act 1958 must cause a report to be prepared
15 specifying--
(a) the 50th percentile response time by
municipal district for MFESB services in the
relevant rolling information period; and
(b) the 90th percentile response time by
20 municipal district for MFESB services in the
relevant rolling information period.
(2) If there are less than 10 incidents for any
emergency incident type in a municipal district
for the rolling information period, the report
25 under subsection (1) may specify the incident
response time for each incident instead of the
50th percentile response time and the
90th percentile response time.
(3) Subject to section 9, the Minister administering
30 the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958 must
cause a report prepared under subsection (1) to be
published by the publication date on a website
managed and administered by Emergency
Management Victoria.
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Part 2--Response times
(4) For the purposes of causing the preparation and
publication of a report under this section, the
Minister administering the Metropolitan Fire
Brigades Act 1958 may request the MFESB--
5 (a) to give the Minister any relevant information
in any form specified by the Minister; and
(b) to provide assistance generally for the
purposes of preparing a report under this
section.
10 (5) The MFESB must comply with any request made
under subsection (4) by the Minister administering
the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958.
8 Minister to cause quarterly publication of response
time data in relation to CFA services
15 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Minister
administering the Country Fire Authority
Act 1958 must cause a report to be prepared
specifying--
(a) the 50th percentile response time by
20 municipal district for CFA services in the
relevant rolling information period; and
(b) the 90th percentile response time by
municipal district for CFA services in the
relevant rolling information period.
25 (2) If there are less than 10 incidents for any
emergency incident type in a municipal district
for the rolling information period, the report
under subsection (1) may specify the incident
response time for each incident instead of the
30 50th percentile response time and the
90th percentile response time.
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Part 2--Response times
(3) Subject to section 9, the Minister administering
the Country Fire Authority Act 1958 must cause
a report prepared under subsection (1) to be
published by the publication date on a website
5 managed and administered by Emergency
Management Victoria.
(4) For the purposes of causing the preparation and
publication of a report under this section, the
Minister administering the Country Fire
10 Authority Act 1958 may request the CFA--
(a) to give the Minister any relevant information
in any form specified by the Minister; and
(b) to provide assistance generally for the
purposes of preparing a report under this
15 section.
(5) The CFA must comply with any request made
under subsection (4) by the Minister administering
the Country Fire Authority Act 1958.
9 Quarterly reporting by emergency service
20 unreasonable in case of major emergency or
capacity materially impacted
(1) A Minister who is required to cause the
preparation and publication of a report under this
Part in relation to each rolling information period
25 may delay the preparation and publication of that
report if the Minister is of the opinion that--
(a) preparation and publication of the report by
the publication date would unreasonably
divert the resources of an emergency service
30 from a major emergency; or
(b) prolonged and sustained industrial action has
had a material impact on the capacity of an
emergency service to provide the Minister
with response time data and assistance
35 generally for the purposes of enabling the
Minister to cause the preparation and
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Part 2--Response times
publication of the report by the publication
date.
(2) The Minister may delay the publication of
multiple reports in respect of multiple rolling
5 information periods under subsection (1).
(3) If the Minister delays the publication of a report
under subsection (1), the Minister must--
(a) make a statement specifying that the report
will not be published on or by the
10 publication date and the reason for this; and
(b) publish the statement specified in
paragraph (a)--
(i) on or by the publication date for each
rolling information period in respect of
15 which a report is not published; and
(ii) on a website managed and administered
by the relevant government department
or Emergency Management Victoria.
(4) If the publication of a report prepared in
20 accordance with this Part is delayed under
subsection (1), the Minister must ensure--
(a) if the publication of only one report is
delayed, that the report is published as soon
as practicable after the publication date for
25 the last rolling information period in respect
of which publication has been delayed but
not later than the publication date for the
report due in respect of the next rolling
information period; or
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(b) if the publication of multiple reports is
delayed, that all the reports in respect of
which publication has been delayed are
published on the same day being a day as
5 soon as practicable after the publication date
for the last rolling information period in
respect of which publication has been
delayed but not later than the publication
date for the report due in respect of the next
10 rolling information period.
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
Part 3--Statement of priorities
Division 1--Publication of statement of priorities
10 Publication of statement of priorities--ambulance
service
5 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Minister
administering the Ambulance Services Act 1986
must cause any statement of priorities for an
ambulance service to be published on or before
1 November in the financial year to which the
10 statement of priorities relates on a website
managed and administered by the relevant
government department
(2) If the board of an ambulance service and the
Minister administering the Ambulance Services
15 Act 1986 fail to agree on a statement of priorities
in a period that would allow for publication of the
statement of priorities by 1 November, the
Minister must cause--
(a) a notification statement to be made
20 specifying that a statement of priorities will
not be published by 1 November in respect
of that financial year and the reason for the
delay; and
(b) the notification statement to be published by
25 1 November on a website managed and
administered by the relevant Government
Department.
(3) In the circumstances specified in subsection (2),
the Minister administering the Ambulance
30 Services Act 1986 must cause the statement of
priorities of the ambulance service to be published
on a website managed and administered by the
relevant government department as soon as
practicable after the statement of priorities is
35 agreed to by the Minister and the board of an
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
ambulance service but not later than one month
after the statement of priorities has been agreed to.
(4) If the statement of priorities of an ambulance
service is varied under section 22F of the
5 Ambulance Services Act 1986, the Minister
administering that Act must cause the statement of
priorities, as varied, to be published on a website
managed and administered by the relevant
government department as soon as practicable but
10 not later than one month after the variation was
agreed to.
(5) The Minister administering the Ambulance
Services Act 1986 must cause a table to be
published on a website managed and administered
15 by the relevant government department on or by
each publication date containing any updated
performance indicator target against the relevant
performance indicator specified in the notice
issued under section 17(1).
20 11 Publication of statement of priorities--public health
service
(1) Subject to subsection (2), the Minister
administering the Health Services Act 1988 must
cause the statement of priorities for a public health
25 service to be published on a website managed and
administered by the relevant government
department on or before 1 November in the
financial year to which the statement of priorities
relates.
30 (2) If the board of a public health service and the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 fail to agree on a statement of priorities
in a period that would allow for publication of the
statement of priorities by 1 November, the
35 Minister must cause--
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
(a) a notification statement to be made
specifying that a statement of priorities will
not be published by 1 November in respect
of that financial year and the reason for the
5 delay; and
(b) the notification statement to be published by
1 November on a website managed and
administered by the relevant government
department.
10 (3) In the circumstances specified in subsection (2),
the Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 must cause the statement of priorities of
the public health service to be published on a
website managed and administered by the relevant
15 government department as soon as practicable
after the statement of priorities is agreed to by the
Minister and the board of a public health service
but not later than one month after the statement of
priorities has been agreed to.
20 (4) If the statement of priorities of a public health
service is varied under section 65ZFA of the
Health Services Act 1988, the Minister
administering that Act must cause the statement of
priorities, as varied, to be published on a website
25 managed and administered by the relevant
government department as soon as practicable but
not later than one month after the variation was
agreed to.
(5) The Minister administering the Health Services
30 Act 1988 must cause a table to be published on a
website managed and administered by the relevant
government department on or by each publication
date containing any updated performance
indicator target against the relevant performance
35 indicator specified in the notice issued under
section 17(1).
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
12 Publication of statement of priorities--
denominational hospital
(1) Subject to subsection (2), if the board of a
denominational hospital and the Minister
5 administering the Health Services Act 1988
have agreed to a statement of priorities under
section 44A of that Act, the Minister must cause
that statement of priorities to be published on a
website managed and administered by the relevant
10 government department on or before 1 November
in the financial year to which the statement of
priorities relates.
(2) If the board of a denominational hospital and the
Minister administering the Health Services
15 Act 1988 have not agreed to a statement of
priorities in a period that would allow for
publication in accordance with subsection (1),
however a statement of priorities is later agreed to
by the board and the Minister in that financial
20 year, the Minister must cause the statement of
priorities to be published on a website managed
and administered by the relevant government
department as soon as practicable after that
agreement but not later than one month after that
25 agreement.
(3) If the statement of priorities of a denominational
hospital is varied under the Health Services
Act 1988, the Minister administering that Act
must cause the statement of priorities, as varied, to
30 be published on a website administered by the
relevant government department as soon as
practicable but not later than one month after the
variation was agreed to.
(4) The Minister administering the Health Services
35 Act 1988 must cause a table to be published on a
website managed and administered by the relevant
government department on or by each publication
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
date containing any updated performance
indicator target against the relevant performance
indicator specified in the notice issued under
section 17(1).
5 Division 2--Quarterly reporting requirements
13 Public health service performance data quarterly
reports
(1) Subject to Division 3, the Minister administering
the Health Services Act 1988 must cause the
10 preparation of a report setting out data in respect
of each quarter of the performance of a public
health service against the performance indicators
in the statement of priorities and which have also
been specified in the notice issued under
15 section 17(1).
(2) The Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 must cause a report prepared under this
section to be published by the publication date on
a website managed and administered by the
20 relevant government department.
(3) A report prepared under this section may present
data in respect of individual hospitals that
constitute the public health service.
(4) For the purposes of causing the preparation and
25 publication of a report under this section, the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 may request the board of a public health
service--
(a) to give the Minister any relevant information
30 in any form specified by the Minister; and
(b) to provide assistance generally for the
purposes of preparing a report under this
section.
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(5) The board of a public health service must comply
with any request made under subsection (4) by the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988.
5 14 Denominational hospitals performance data
quarterly reports
(1) Subject to Division 3, the Minister administering
the Health Services Act 1988 must cause the
preparation of a report setting out data in respect
10 of each quarter of the performance of a
denominational hospital against the performance
indicators in the statement of priorities and which
have also been specified in the notice issued under
section 17(1).
15 (2) The Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 must cause a report prepared under this
section to be published by the publication date on
a website managed and administered by the
relevant government department.
20 (3) A report prepared under this section may present
data in respect of individual hospitals that
constitute the denominational hospital.
(4) For the purposes of causing the preparation and
publication of a report under this section, the
25 Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 may request the board of a
denominational hospital--
(a) to give the Minister any relevant information
in any form specified by the Minister; and
30 (b) to provide assistance generally for the
purposes of preparing a report under this
section.
(5) The board of a denominational hospital must
comply with any request made under subsection
35 (4) by the Minister administering the Health
Services Act 1988.
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15 Quarterly reports in circumstances where statement
of priorities not agreed to--public health service
(1) If the board of a public health service and the
Minister administering the Health Services
5 Act 1988 fail to agree on a statement of priorities
which would have allowed a report to be prepared
and published under section 13, the Minister may
cause a report setting out data in respect of the
performance of a public health service against any
10 relevant performance indicators specified in
accordance with section 17--
(a) to be prepared for each quarter in respect of
which the statement of priorities has not been
agreed to; and
15 (b) to be published on a website managed and
administered by the relevant government
department by the publication date in respect
of each quarter to which paragraph (a)
applies.
20 (2) If a statement of priorities is agreed to by the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 and the board of a public health service,
the Minister must cause a report setting out the
data in respect of the performance of the public
25 health service against the performance indicators
in the statement of priorities and which have also
been specified in the notice issued under
section 17(1)--
(a) to be prepared in respect of the next full
30 quarter following the statement of priorities
being agreed to; and
(b) to be published on a website managed and
administered by the relevant government
department by the publication date in respect
35 of the next full quarter.
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(3) For the purposes of causing the preparation and
publication of a report under this section, the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 may request the board of a public health
5 service--
(a) to give the Minister any relevant information
in any form specified by the Minister; and
(b) to provide assistance generally for the
purposes of preparing a report under this
10 section.
(4) The board of a public health service must comply
with any request made under subsection (3) by the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988.
15 16 Quarterly reports in circumstances where statement
of priorities not agreed to--denominational hospital
(1) If the board of a denominational hospital and the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 have not agreed to a statement of
20 priorities, the Minister may cause a report setting
out data in respect of the performance of a
denominational hospital against any relevant
performance indicators specified in accordance
with section 17.
25 (2) If the Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 causes the preparation of a report under
subsection (1), the report should--
(a) be prepared for each quarter in respect of
which the statement of priorities has not been
30 agreed to; and
(b) be published on a website managed and
administered by the relevant government
department by the publication date in respect
of each quarter to which paragraph (a)
35 applies.
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(3) If a statement of priorities is agreed to by the
Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 and the board of the denominational
hospital, the Minister must cause a report setting
5 out the data in respect of the performance of the
denominational hospital against the performance
indicators in the statement of priorities and which
have also been specified in the notice issued under
section 17(1)--
10 (a) to be prepared in respect of the next full
quarter following the statement of priorities
being agreed to; and
(b) to be published on a website managed and
administered by the relevant government
15 department by the publication date in respect
of the next full quarter.
(4) For the purposes of causing the preparation and
publication of a report under this section, the
Minister administering the Health Services
20 Act 1988 may request the board of a
denominational hospital--
(a) to give the Minister any relevant information
in any form specified by the Minister; and
(b) to provide assistance generally for the
25 purposes of preparing a report under this
section.
(5) The board of a denominational hospital must
comply with any request made under subsection
(4) by the Minister administering the Health
30 Services Act 1988.
17 Performance indicators against which performance
to be assessed for quarterly reporting purposes
(1) The Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 must issue a notice specifying the
35 performance indicators against which
performance may be assessed and monitored
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
and that must be reported on in a report prepared
under this Division.
(2) A notice issued under subsection (1) may specify
performance indicators from the prescribed
5 performance categories.
(3) A notice issued under subsection (1)--
(a) must be published in the Government
Gazette; and
(b) must be published on a website managed and
10 administered by the relevant government
department; and
(c) has effect on and after the day specified in
the notice being a day--
(i) not earlier than the day of publication
15 of the notice in the Government
Gazette; and
(ii) that allows for sufficient time for the
specified performance indicators to be
reported on in the report for the next
20 full quarter following publication of the
notice.
(4) For the purposes of this section, the Minister
administering the Health Services Act 1988
must--
25 (a) after the commencement of this Division,
issue a notice under subsection (1) that
would allow for the preparation and
publication of a report under this Division by
the first publication date that is to apply after
30 the commencement of this Division; and
(b) after issuing a notice in accordance with
paragraph (a), issue any subsequent notice
under this section from time to time as
required.
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
Division 3--Exceptions to quarterly reporting
requirements
18 Quarterly report not practical for excepted
performance indicators
5 (1) This section applies if the Minister administering
the Health Services Act 1988 is of the opinion
that the reporting of data under section 13 or 14
(as appropriate) by the publication date is not
practical for a particular performance indicator
10 (an excepted performance indicator).
(2) If this section applies, the Minister administering
the Health Services Act 1988 may determine an
alternative reporting timetable for data in respect
of the excepted performance indicator.
15 (3) The Minister administering the Health Services
Act 1988 must ensure that any alternative
reporting timetable of data in respect of an
excepted performance indicator is explained--
(a) in all reports caused to be prepared
20 and published under section 13 or 14
(as appropriate) after the Minister has
made the determination; and
(b) in a statement published on a website
managed and administered by the relevant
25 government department at the same time
each report is published.
(4) The explanation of the Minister administering the
Health Services Act 1988 under subsection (3)
must specify--
30 (a) the excepted performance indicator in
respect of which data will not be provided
in the report in accordance with section 13
or 14; and
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
(b) the alternative reporting timetable for data
in respect of the excepted performance
indicator; and
(c) the reasons for the Minister's opinion that it
5 would not be practical to provide data in
respect of the excepted performance
indicator in accordance with section 13
or 14.
19 Quarterly reporting by public health service or
10 denominational hospital unreasonable in case of
major emergency or capacity materially impacted
(1) A Minister who is required to cause the
preparation and publication of a report in respect
of a quarter under Division 2 or this Division may
15 delay the preparation and publication of that
report if the Minister is of the opinion that--
(a) preparation and publication of the report by
the publication date would unreasonably
divert the resources of a public health service
20 or denominational hospital from a major
emergency; or
(b) prolonged and sustained industrial action has
had a material impact on the capacity of a
public health service or denominational
25 hospital to provide the Minister with
information and assistance generally for the
purposes of enabling the Minister to cause
the preparation and publication of the report
by the publication date.
30 (2) The Minister may delay the publication of
multiple reports in respect of multiple consecutive
quarters under subsection (1).
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Part 3--Statement of priorities
(3) If the Minister delays the publication of a report
under subsection (1), the Minister must--
(a) make a statement specifying that the
report will not be published on or by the
5 publication date for each quarter a report is
not published and the reason for this; and
(b) publish the statement specified in paragraph
(a)--
(i) on or by the publication date for each
10 quarter the report is not published; and
(ii) on a website managed and administered
by the relevant government department.
(4) If the publication of a report prepared in
accordance with Division 2 or this Division is
15 delayed under subsection (1), the Minister must
ensure--
(a) if the publication of only one report is
delayed, that the report is published as soon
as practicable after the publication date
20 for the last quarter in respect of which
publication has been delayed but not later
than the publication date for the report due
in respect of the next quarter; or
(b) if the publication of multiple reports is
25 delayed, that all the reports in respect of
which publication has been delayed are
published on the same day being a day as
soon as practicable after the publication date
for the last quarter in respect of which
30 publication has been delayed but not later
than the publication date for the report due in
respect of the next quarter.
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Part 4--General
Part 4--General
20 Information reporting periods and publication dates
(1) Subject to subsection (2), unless otherwise
provided in this Act, the following table applies to
5 any report prepared or statement made in
accordance with Part 2 and Divisions 2 and 3 of
Part 3.
Column 1 Column 2
Quarterly information period Publication date
1 July to 30 September 1 November
1 October to 31 December 1 February
1 January to 31 March 1 May
1 April to 30 June 1 August
(2) Despite anything to the contrary in this Act, for
the purposes of the publication of a report in
10 Part 2 on a relevant publication date, the
4 quarterly information periods preceding that
relevant publication date (the relevant rolling
information period) apply.
21 Consolidation of reports and updates
15 (1) Any report prepared in accordance with Part 2 in
respect of a rolling information period, and
Divisions 2 and 3 of Part 3 in respect of a quarter,
may be updated at any time following the release
of each subsequent report for a relevant period
20 until the final end of year consolidation of data.
(2) Any report updated under subsection (1) must
specify in the report that it has been updated.
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Part 4--General
22 Provision of additional information
(1) A report prepared under this Act may provide any
additional information--
(a) that assists in the understanding of the report
5 and the data reported on; and
(b) that relates to the performance of an
emergency service, public health service or
denominational hospital generally.
(2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1),
10 additional information may include--
(a) information that provides background,
context or explanation in relation to the data
reported on; and
(b) a description of any policies, programs or
15 circumstances relevant to the data reported
on; and
(c) any other data that may be relevant to the
performance of the emergency service,
public health service or denominational
20 hospital to which the report relates.
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Part 5--Regulations
Part 5--Regulations
23 Regulations
(1) The Governor in Council may make regulations
for or with respect to--
5 (a) prescribing emergency incidents in respect
of which the response time data of the
ambulance services, MFESB services or
CFA services are to be reported; and
(b) prescribing complex emergency incidents for
10 the purposes of section 5(2)(b) and (3)(b);
and
(c) prescribing the appliances required to attend
complex emergency incidents; and
(d) prescribing performance categories for the
15 purposes of section 17(2); and
(e) generally any matter or thing required or
permitted by this Act to be prescribed or
necessary to be prescribed to give effect to
this Act.
20 (2) Regulations made under this Act may--
(a) be of general or limited application; and
(b) differ according to differences in time, place
and circumstance; and
(c) confer a discretionary authority or impose a
25 duty on--
(i) a specified person or body; or
(ii) a specified class of person or body; and
(d) provide in a specified case or class of case
for the exemption of persons or things or a
30 class of person or things from any of the
provisions of the regulations--
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Part 5--Regulations
(i) whether unconditionally or on specified
conditions; and
(ii) either wholly or to such an extent as is
specified.
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Part 6--Amendment of Ambulance Services Act 1986
Part 6--Amendment of Ambulance Services
Act 1986
24 When statement of priorities to be prepared
At the foot of section 22F(5) of the Ambulance
5 Services Act 1986 insert--
"Note
See section 10 of the Transparency in Government
Act 2015 which requires the publication of a statement of
priorities prepared under this section.".
10 25 Repeal amending Part
This Part is repealed on 1 July 2017.
Note
The repeal of this Part does not affect the continuing operation of
the amendment made by it (see section 15(1) of the Interpretation
15 of Legislation Act 1984).
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Endnotes
Endnotes
1 General information
See www.legislation.vic.gov.au for Victorian Bills, Acts and current
authorised versions of legislation and up-to-date legislative information.
By Authority. Government Printer for the State of Victoria.
581068B.I-8/12/2015 32 BILL LA INTRODUCTION 8/12/2015
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