Page 2476 - Week 07 - Monday, 15 August 2022
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the government of which they are part. Minister Rattenbury has already clearly confirmed this. He did this on the very day this shallow and superficial motion was tabled. So, instead of wasting the Assembly’s time today with doomed no confidence motions that add absolutely no value to anything, we should be focused on delivering for Canberrans. That is the government’s priority.
After extensive examination during the estimates process—if and when that begins—the appropriation bills will be debated in detail in this place during the October sittings, and I confidently predict that they will receive the support of the Assembly. The opposition will vote against them, as they vote against all good initiatives for the people of Canberra delivered through the annual budget process. They are on the record every single year as voting against the budget. Through the appropriation bills, the government will continue to deliver on the priorities that we have agreed and that we have released to the public through the Parliamentary and Governing Agreement.
This no confidence motion has no basis and should not be supported.
MR RATTENBURY (Kurrajong) (9.13): The Greens do not support this no confidence motion, as I flagged when we last met. We have confidence in the Chief Minister. We think this government is functioning well and, as I have already made clear, we support the budget.
We reject this motion from Ms Lee. It is another attempt to oppose and attack the government. That is clear, and that is what oppositions do. And I suppose it is to be expected even more during budget week, when public attention for the opposition can be a little scarce. I think we would all much prefer to see policy ideas from the Liberal Party which we can discuss and debate, rather than these sorts of oppositional stances. I am sure the community would like to see that as well.
The motion also reflects the blinkered and stubborn refusal of the Liberal Party to understand or accept the idea of multiparty governments and to disavow the way this government functions, even though it has been serving the community very well. Maybe it serves their political strategy, or maybe they just cannot countenance a more flexible democracy. But the Liberal Party needs to accept how this government functions.
We have a government made up of two different political parties. We Greens have different ideas and different policies to Labor. I think that is understood. Yet we cooperate, debate and govern in the interests of Canberrans. We have disagreements and sometimes we formally do not support the other’s position. That has happened plenty of times throughout this Assembly, in public—through amendments in the Assembly or through votes on motions. Members of the Liberal Party know this.
Sometimes cabinet members disagree, even formally, as Greens and Labor have done on the funding for the racing industry, on Ms Clay’s vulnerable road user amendment earlier this year or on a variety of issues throughout the previous Assemblies. Sometimes Greens crossbenchers bring new ideas into this Assembly through bills and motions or campaign on other issues. This is our multiparty Assembly functioning democratically.
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