Page 2012 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 5 June 1990
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I would ask the Government to think very seriously about this matter. Mr Jensen is in an agitated state referring to alleged practices under the previous Government. All members of this house came to the house new. Parliamentary practice in this house is continuing to develop and probably will continue to develop for the coming few years and with changes of government. We are asking the Government to think seriously about its practice here. Let us get it right for the future. Let us do in this chamber what governments and oppositions do in every other chamber in Australia and exhibit the simple courtesy of a phone call to the Leader of the Opposition or the manager of Opposition business and say, "Today we want to make two statements: the Chief Minister on environment; the Chief Minister on the appointment of an Auditor-General". The Opposition clearly would then give leave and we could proceed to more important business. It is a simple matter of courtesy, Mr Kaine. We were not told the subject; that is the important point.
If you are not prepared to observe that common decency and common courtesy, the Opposition will be forced to continue refusing leave. Let us do away with this nonsense. Let us conduct ourselves like civilised people, as they do in every other parliament in Australia. Let us have the courtesy of giving notice of both the intention of making a statement and the subject matter and then we can get on with important business.
MR KAINE (Chief Minister) (3.40): Mr Speaker, I moved the motion but I did not speak to it and I think that Mr Connolly's tirade deserves a response. He used the words "courtesy" and "decency" literally a dozen times during that speech. He was not here, so he does not know that in the seven months during which the Opposition was in government they never once consulted me as Leader of the Opposition on their ministerial statements - never once. That is a matter of fact, Mr Connolly. You talk about decency and courtesy. Let us have a little bit of it.
Mr Berry: You were a bit slow as an opposition; you should have objected.
MR KAINE: This is a huge joke, is it not, because you have been caught out, Mr Berry? You raised this question. You have been caught out. You never once in seven months consulted us on your ministerial statements. Furthermore, Mr Speaker, never once when we were in opposition did we refuse a Minister leave to make a ministerial statement. You get up and you talk about decency and courtesy. You humbug!
Question resolved in the affirmative.
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