Page 1391 - Week 07 - Thursday, 24 August 1989
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
A member: Does she pay tax?
MS FOLLETT: Of course she pays tax.
Mr Stevenson: I take a point of order, Mr Speaker. I did not say that. I talked of support from and support to the Labor Party.
MR SPEAKER: That is not a valid point of order, Mr Stevenson.
MS FOLLETT: The Labor Party has no staff whatsoever. I repeat that Bill Wood has one member of staff, who is employed within the staffing allocation that I have made and within the basis of staffing resources that I have provided to all Assembly members. So I think that point needs to be made very clearly. Mr Duby attempted to make that point as a point of order. I state now that it is the case. Bill Wood has one member of staff, and he is extremely ably served by that one member of staff. He did not seem to have Mr Stevenson's apparent difficulties in finding a suitable member of staff. For Mr Stevenson to imply that Mr Wood enjoys further resources is quite incorrect.
I also would like to state that it is a fact that all Ministers - and there are only four of us - do have some written notes which we rely upon in answering questions in the Assembly. Sometimes the questions are covered by the notes; very often they are not. In fact, the degree of detail that is sometimes required of members in the Assembly could never be encompassed by written material provided to Ministers. So, I think, to imply that there is somehow an inadequacy on the part of Ministers because they occasionally read from their notes in answering a question is also quite wrong.
Mr Stevenson: I take a point of order. I did not say that at all. I just stated a fact.
MS FOLLETT: Mr Speaker, I would like to conclude my remarks by saying that I find absolutely extraordinary and totally unedifying the high moral tone that has been taken by members opposite and Mr Stevenson throughout the course of debate on what I regard as a base and venal matter.
Mr Humphries: On a point of order, Mr Speaker; the Chief Minister is again reflecting on a previous vote of the Assembly and it is outlawed by standing orders.
MR SPEAKER: That is correct.
MS FOLLETT: I am reflecting on the high moral tone, Mr Speaker.
Mr Humphries: You are reflecting on the vote.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .