Page 198 - Week 01 - Thursday, 15 February 1990
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We take a very dim view of this. We are not going to call it the razor gang, but I have forgotten what we are going to call it now - some fancy name given by Mr Duby. But Mr Duby might realise that he and quite a few others will not be here after the next election and that they will be looking for jobs in the public service - as we know, very low ones - so I would be thinking very carefully about cutting such things as the public service if I were in their shoes. Because Mr Duby and Mr Jensen were employed in the public service - one Federal and one - yes, Mr Jensen, you were - - -
Mr Jensen: Wrong.
MRS GRASSBY: Yes, you were in the Army, Mr Jensen.
Mr Jensen: Wrong.
MRS GRASSBY: So you had better think about that.
Mr Jensen: I retired in April 1988.
MRS GRASSBY: That does not matter; you were still in the public service, Mr Jensen. The Chief Minister will not have to worry about that; he will be retiring. But quite a few of you will need to be looking for jobs in the public service, so I would think very carefully before you decide to cut them - - -
Mr Kaine: I am not retiring for 10 years yet, Ellnor - not for 10 years.
MRS GRASSBY: I do not think you should, either, and I think you should take the position of being Chief Minister and not let other people do it for you, Mr Chief Minister.
MR WOOD (12.04): Mr Speaker, in some measure this debate is covering some of the ground that is proposed for us to cover later in the afternoon, as the ALP proposes a matter of public importance on the Government's financing policies. I will be speaking in that debate, so I do not propose to make my comments now. I hope that this measure is one of desperation by the Government to get business before the house and is not a tactic to pre-empt some of the remarks that will be made this afternoon.
As it turns out, today we are certainly concentrating on the Government's budget policies, on its systems which are yet to be fully revealed of financing this Territory and of providing the services that people want. It is proper that this focus should be there because it is a critical issue. Let us hope that the Government attends to all the remarks that are made, that it does not, some way further down the track, attend to only the comments of the Priorities Review Board. That would be unfortunate since its review is likely to be rather one-sided. Mr Speaker, other than that, I will reserve my comments until later.
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