Page 2813 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 14 August 1990
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MR HUMPHRIES: Yes, and debates happen in legislative assemblies.
Ms Follett: When you are too scared or have not got any business - - -
Mr Berry: But the motion before this place is that we take note of the paper, for heaven's sake.
MR HUMPHRIES: It appears that Ms Follett and her colleagues are unable to contribute any positive or even negative arguments to this whole debate, except for those put forward by Mr Berry.
MR ACTING SPEAKER: Order! Members.
Mr Berry: The motion before the house is that we take note of the paper. Heavens above!
MR HUMPHRIES: Well, you were able to raise school closures in the context of taking note of the paper on the university hospital, so obviously a pretty wide debate can ensue - but apparently not wide enough to spread to any of your colleagues. I think it is an important issue and I think it is - - -
Mr Berry: You are a bit tetchy about school closures, Gary. I can understand why.
MR HUMPHRIES: We should all be sorry for the fact that Mr Berry seems to be unable to get off that issue and understand that there are other important issues facing the Territory and this is one of them. It is also worth commenting, from Mr Berry's comments - and his are the only ones we have to go on in the course of this debate - that it is pretty obvious that there is a certain element of panic in the response exhibited by the Opposition to the debate tonight.
Ms Follett: Ha, ha!
MR HUMPHRIES: Ms Follett laughs; she thinks that is funny, but I think she should examine Mr Berry's comments very seriously. I am not sure she was here all the time. She would see very clearly that there was a large element of panic in those comments. What Mr Berry fails to appreciate is that, in fact, nothing has yet been set in concrete in respect of this proposal. We do not yet have a Government decision to proceed with a university hospital. We do not have a Government commitment to spend funds on a clinical school. We have nothing of that kind. We only have an idea, a paper - a position worthy of exploration put forward by a committee established under the aegis of the Interim Board of Directors of the Canberra hospitals.
Apparently, Mr Berry and his colleagues begrudge the exploration of that idea to the extent that it has been explored by this committee. He begrudges the efforts that
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