Questions on Notice
Make the government answer
Some questions get dodged on talkback and ignored in the inbox. A Question on Notice is different. It makes a minister answer in writing, on the public record, and Bevan can put one for you.
Tell us what needs askingThe basics
What is a Question on Notice?
It is a formal written question your local MP puts to a government minister. The minister has to answer it in writing, and both the question and the answer go on the public record in Parliament. You bring the facts, Bevan asks the question.
Why it works
Why it is worth doing
A phone call can go unanswered. This cannot. The minister has to respond, in writing.
The question and the answer are published in Parliament, where anyone can look them up.
If they dodge it or refuse to answer, that is on the record as well. A straight question makes a non-answer obvious.
How it works
Start to finish
Your part
What we need from you
The sharper the facts, the harder the question is to dodge. You do not need all of this. Even one solid fact and a date gives us something to work with.
- What happened, and when. A date makes it stronger.
- Who or what it affects, and how.
- Any number you have: a cost, a count, an amount.
- The part of government it is about, if you know, like fisheries, health, roads or education.
- Anything in writing: a letter, an email, a notice, a bill.
If a local service was cut, we might ask how many people used it, what it cost to run, and on what date the decision was made. The minister has to put those numbers on the record.
Send it in
Tell us what needs asking
Send our team the facts, and we will do the rest. If it can be turned into a question, we will put it to the minister.
Bevan Eatts MLA
Member for Warren-Blackwood
A Question on Notice is a written question to a minister, answered in writing and published in Parliament. Bevan asks it on your behalf. What the minister can be asked is set by the rules of the Legislative Assembly.