Page 1678 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 29 May 1990
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It is quite proper to say that the media should focus their attention on the events of this place. This place is the chamber in which matters of public importance concerning the citizens of Canberra should be agitated, and should be agitated in the full glare of the media. That is perfectly proper, and I would be astounded if the Government thought otherwise.
In every other parliament, knowing that interaction between the press and the Parliament, the government is prepared to face a censure motion, particularly when an opposition - and I would suggest that this Opposition does act responsibly in this way - does not bring a censure motion on at the drop of the hat, every day, every week, week in, week out. Censure motions are reserved for matters of substantial importance and ministerial impropriety.
The Chief Minister, of course, is not paying attention, which he chastised us for not doing some time ago. An allegation of ministerial impropriety should be the most serious matter before the Chief Minister's attention. When the press in Canberra suggest that Ministers in his Cabinet have acted improperly and should not be in his Cabinet, he should take that on very seriously. He should want that to be debated and agitated in this house in the full glare of the Canberra community because as leader of this parliament, as Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory, he should be able to get up and defend the standards of his Ministers.
He is just not prepared to do that. Last week he retreated to the bunker. They tried the old tactic of the ostrich: put your head in the sand and ignore public comment; do not talk to the press and maybe they will go away. I tell you, Chief Minister, the press are not that silly. I am surprised that you even thought they were. They were not going to ignore the matter because you ignored them. They continued to agitate it and it continued to attract significant public attention. At functions which members of this Assembly have attended, particularly last week at the business function put on by the Civic Advance Bank, a number of senior persons in business have approached me and expressed their concern over this. I am sure that Mr Kaine's supporters in the business community have been speaking to him on this matter.
Mr Kaine: Yes.
MR CONNOLLY: I am sure that his supporters in the Liberal Party are expressing their concern at keeping Mr Duby in the Cabinet with this charge, but they just do not want to face a debate in the full glare of publicity. That is a matter that they should be as ashamed of as the continued retention of Mr Duby in the Cabinet. These two ministerial statements - and, we are told, Mr Humphries is to make another statement this afternoon - are designed - - -
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