Page 58 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 23 May 1989
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MR SPEAKER: Order! To comment on Mr Moore's statement, papers were passed to the Assembly Secretariat, under my responsibility. Unfortunately, through administrative overload at this time, we were not able to get the papers to you. It was not a conscious effort on behalf of the Labor Party; it was an error on our part. I take the point that time would have been available had this slip-up not occurred.
MR MOORE: But, Mr Speaker, it was not. If we are going to have reasonable discussion on this, we ought have time to look at it.
MR KAINE (Leader of the Opposition) (4.26): I have some sympathy for the position taken by the Residents Rally. I do not know who the pseudo members of the Labor Party are that he was referring to, but I can assure the Residents Rally that the members of the Liberal Party did not see these papers until we came here either. But I did read them quickly and I do understand the import of them. I believe that we have to set about creating our committee structure so that the business of the Assembly can go on.
The terms of reference, on the face of them, appear to me to be satisfactory. If they are not, they can be changed by resolution of the Assembly. I would submit that if whoever are elected to these committees do not like the terms of reference they should come back to the Assembly and suggest how they might be changed and have the Assembly endorse it. But I think the Government's intention is clear, and that is to create the machinery by which our business can be conducted. It cannot all be conducted on the floor of the Assembly. We need the committees and we need them quickly, and so I am in favour of establishing them. But also I have the reservation that if the terms of reference prove to be inadequate, incomplete or insufficient in clarity, then the members elected to these committees have the right and the responsibility to come back and suggest that they be changed so that they are suitable.
MR JENSEN (4.27): Mr Speaker, I rise at this stage to support Mr Moore in relation to this issue. I support Mr Kaine when he says that these committees are important and of critical importance to the development and good government in the ACT. But I would suggest, Mr Speaker, that it is also important to the good government of the ACT to ensure that appropriate time is given to those members who are sitting in this place to consider, consult and look at this information.
I would also suggest that another day in relation to this issue is not going to hold up the wheels of motion too long. For goodness sake, we waited 63 days from the date of the election to the date that we came to this place. I am sure that another day in relation to this issue would not have gone astray. I would have thought that it would
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