Western Australia's premier has defended a lack of parliamentary scrutiny over government bills as it emerged some MPs were being paid to sit on an inactive committee.
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Members of the upper house standing committee on legislation have continued to receive remuneration above their usual MP's salary, despite the fact the group has not met in the past two years.
Labor's Kate Doust and crossbencher Brian Walker do not sit on any other standing committees but have still pocketed more than $21,000 each during that time.
With Labor controlling both houses after its landslide 2021 election victory, the parliament has not referred any legislation to the committee for review.
Premier Roger Cook said there was a need to remunerate committee members so they could "stand ready" to convene.
"It's simply a matter of making sure these committees are in place, ready to go, in the event they have business to consider," he said.
Opposition MPs have criticised the government for allocating little time for some legislation to be considered.
Greens Legislative Council member Brad Pettitt said bills were not getting the scrutiny they deserved.
"As a result we are getting rushed, under-scrutinised legislation that is at risk of not working and having unintended consequences," he said.
But the premier brushed off the criticism, saying the government wanted to pass laws to make WA "a safer place to live".
"We make no apologies for the fact that our legislative agenda is ambitious and we want to see laws passed as quickly as possible," he said.
The remuneration of committee members and other politicians is set by the Salaries and Allowances Tribunal.
Australian Associated Press
