Urgent Debates Declined — Solid Energy—Voluntary Administration

I have received letters from Richard Prosser, the Hon Clayton Cosgrove, and Gareth Hughes seeking to debate under Standing Order 389 the announcement today that Solid Energy has been placed in voluntary administration. This is a particular case of recent occurrence involving ministerial responsibility. The announcement makes it clear that Solid Energy has been placed into temporary voluntary administration and that in the meantime it will continue to operate normally under its existing board of directors. It has been reported that there are no plans for redundancies during the period of administration. Although being placed in voluntary administration is significant, the longer-term outcome of that decision is not yet known.

The business of the House should not be set aside just because an announcement has been made, even though it may be important. There must be such an element of urgency that the matter must take precedence over other business. In this instance, I am not persuaded that there is an element of urgency that warrants the setting aside of the business of the House. The application is, therefore, declined.