Page 803 - Week 03 - Thursday, 22 March 1990
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Administration Act 1974 - in particular section 29 of that - will no longer be insisted upon as it is an instrument of a non-meritocracy.
I am very pleased to say that in the Legal Aid Office 78 per cent of the staff are women and 64 per cent of the staff are solicitors. That gives a good idea of how the Government and particularly those who are professionally based are moving in this area. I believe we will get substantive support within the administration of this Territory for our package of laws. I believe it will bring credit hopefully on this Assembly as well as the Alliance Government.
I will give you an example of the complexities and issues that the Commonwealth legislation does not embrace. New South Wales legislation, for example, deals with discrimination on the basis of sexuality and mental and physical impairment. It brought in racial vilification provisions last year to counter the incitement of racial hatred. These are all issues which are not addressed in Commonwealth legislation and on which we need to do more work.
The Victorian legislation extends to discrimination on the basis of parenthood, physical and mental impairment, religious belief and political affiliation, while South Australian legislation covers discrimination on the basis of sexuality and mental and physical impairment.
Western Australia also addresses discrimination on the basis of religious beliefs, political affiliation and physical and mental impairment. In all these States discrimination on the basis of age is being addressed and it is being addressed here. We may well, with South Australia, be the first to bring in legislation, if we can work through some difficulties in the superannuation and other areas.
Other States are looking at the HIV virus issue in this context and I believe that again, we may be able to make exemplary progress. I assure the people of the ACT that this issue is at the forefront and I tabled a letter yesterday that should establish my personal commitment to these concerns.
MR BERRY (6.20): This has become a political issue because of the lack of action by the Attorney-General, Mr Collaery, and it has exposed the lack of dedication by that Minister to the issue of developing human rights facilities in the ACT. It never ceases to amaze me and other members of the Opposition that there is always an imminent Cabinet decision, or the press has just been cranked up, or a piece of legislation is just about to roll off the press, when the Government gets flushed out by the Opposition.
We heard the whinges from Mr Collaery about the Northbourne Flats and how Mrs Grassby clubbed him around the ears on that issue.
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