Page 3163 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 12 September 1990
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member believes that there has been a breach of privilege, the proper role is to bring it to your attention immediately as presiding officer.
Mr Speaker, you have considered the matter properly and you have taken some time to consider it. You have given your view. As Ms Follett said in her remarks, it is not for us to query your view. Your view is that it does not take precedence, but the proper function, as you referred to in your letter, is that the Assembly may refer it to the Administration and Procedures Committee. It will be a very sad precedent to set this afternoon if this Assembly is going to decide all questions of breach of privilege by a simple number crunching exercise on the floor of the house and not by referring matters to the proper committee, the Administration and Procedures Committee.
Our view is that this was a breach of privilege, for the reasons set out by Ms Follett. I am not going to traverse here the merits as to whether it was or was not a breach of privilege. That is not the issue. When the house is confronted with an allegation of a breach of privilege, the proper function of the house and the proper function of any member who takes their role as a member seriously is to refer that allegation to the appropriate committee, not to take it as a partisan political matter and not to vote on numbers lines simply to dismiss the matter out of hand. A serious allegation has been raised. Mr Collaery goes close to conceding this by saying that the question of a Minister's role in communicating with a parliamentary committee needs further examination.
A serious allegation has been made. The appropriate function of members is to refer it to the Administration and Procedures Committee. It is very unfortunate if we are establishing the practice - as seems to be occurring - that matters do not get raised and then referred to the committee; instead they get raised and then debated on partisan lines on the floor of the Assembly. This is really reducing the question of parliamentary privilege to a simple matter of who has the numbers on the day in the chamber, and not allowing a proper and considered look at the matter by the appropriate committee.
Mr Speaker, it will be a very sad day for this Assembly and for all members in their role as private members if this action of Mr Collaery's is allowed to pass unchallenged.
Question put:
That the motion be agreed to.
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