Page 1485 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 27 September 1989
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MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: There has to be a motion of the Assembly to allow Mr Berry to have an extension.
MR WHALAN (Deputy Chief Minister): I move that Mr Berry be granted an extension of time.
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Of how many minutes? I think you need to actually specify the period.
MR WHALAN: According to the standing orders.
Ms Follett: Half the time he was allowed - two and a half minutes.
(Extension of time granted)
MR BERRY: Thank you. It comes back, Mr Deputy Speaker, to this issue of public consultation, not the pros and cons of fluoridation. It is about getting the issue out in the public forum so that the people of the ACT can closely scrutinise all of the deliberations and the pros and cons of the fluoridation debate. This Assembly ought not be used as a tool to bully through this sort of legislation and to avoid that very important aspect of democracy. I think that, if this Assembly, including all of the political parties, were to do that, it would demonstrate their unwillingness, if you like, to properly serve and implement the wishes of the people of Canberra in relation to this important issue of dental health.
I think that, because of the status quo which exists in relation to the provision of fluoride in the ACT water, the people of Canberra deserve the right to have full and close scrutiny of the deliberations of the Assembly on this matter and to target, if they like, those people who do not support their particular view on the future health of their children and their relatives.
MR HUMPHRIES (10.39): I rise to indicate that we will not be supporting the suspension of standing orders, for two reasons. First of all, we are concerned, and we have expressed for some time our concern, about the proliferation of committees that have been created in this place. I note that the Government's attitude towards those sorts of committees has changed over time.
Mrs Grassby: This is a standing committee.
MR HUMPHRIES: Well, okay. The creation of committees and the reference of matters to existing committees are both matters of concern to the Liberal Party. I know that we have had a large number of things referred to committees in the past few months, and a large number of other committees have been created. Quite frankly, I think the line has to be drawn somewhere, and I hope we would be in a position at the moment not to create any more committees or any more references to committees unless and until some of the existing workload is relieved. That is the first point I want to make.
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