Page 139 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 14 February 1990
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the fact is, Mr Speaker, that they have not been. They have sat on this side of the chamber as government and they set certain standards there, which they now seem to believe should not be applied to us in government. The fact is, Mr Speaker, that when those members opposite formed the minority five-member Government for seven months last year they were in precisely the same position and found themselves having to fill in time on all sorts of occasions in order to cover up the fact that they had no government business to bring forward.
I can remember the occasion, Mr Speaker, when members opposite proposed a matter of public importance.
Mrs Grassby: Once, to fill in because - - -
MR HUMPHRIES: Once - we have an admission - once we did not have enough government business. Mr Speaker, on that occasion the members opposite did not have enough business to go on with and had to bend parliamentary rules to be able to fill up time. On other occasions question time was allowed to run over, again because there was not the business on the government's agenda to fill up the rest of the day. That has happened as well. I find these claims very hard to swallow. Legislation came through in dribs and drabs. You find yourselves now setting standards which you did not set when you were in government. That is the height of hypocrisy. You ought to realise that, go back into your shells, and let us get on with the proper business of this Assembly, giving the reputation of this Assembly higher esteem in the eyes of the people of this community.
MR MOORE (3.19): Mr Speaker, on many occasions, particularly in question time, I heard Mr Kaine as Leader of the Opposition state that the former Government was avoiding questions. I often heard him say that it was using it as an opportunity to make statements and that therefore question time was reduced. What we have seen today is that very thing. It would not be very difficult, because it happened so often, to get the Hansard and quote Mr Kaine on that very thing.
Because the Government now has 10 people in it, it can take up a much greater amount of its time making ministerial-style statements when the opportunity for asking questions is now reduced to the Opposition and the crossbenchers. Since it is just new in government and there is no business on the paper, this would be an excellent opportunity for the Government to provide an extra 30 minutes of question time. Indeed, Mr Kaine has already in effect provided an extra 10 minutes yesterday and an extra 10 minutes today.
Mr Kaine: Which I thought was very reasonable.
MR MOORE: Very reasonable. But, considering that there is no government business on the notice paper, to give the opportunity for another 30 minutes of questions would be
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