Page 3348 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 18 September 1990
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MR KAINE: No, they were refurbishments this year.
Mr Wood: What were the refurbishments last year?
MR KAINE: None.
Mrs Grassby: Come on, Trevor, that is not true.
MR KAINE: You see, you make up the numbers; I am giving you facts. You can make them up, you can speculate, you can hypothesise all you like; but these are the facts. At the same time Mrs Grassby talked about how much money they spent. Mrs Grassby put $37.8m in last year's estimates, but the program that she put in place consumed only $25.9m of that. She could not even put in place a program to use the money that was available. You talk about underexpending. Mrs Grassby undershot by one-third. Just in case you have not the figures in your head, this year we are putting $35.75m in for housing, and that will be spent, I can assure you. So much for Mrs Grassby and our total destruction of the public housing system in the ACT.
I come to Mr Wood. Since Mr Whalan went Mr Wood is by far the best performer in the Opposition; there is no question about it. He should be the Leader of the Opposition. Whenever there is a good debate on the floor of the house it is always Mr Wood who contributes to it. I know your mates will not like this, Bill, but I am telling you the truth. I know Bill's heart is not in it, but he described our appointment of an eminent person to review the mathematics and the facts behind the school closures as "an inquiry into the Government's incompetence". I would like to understand your logic, Bill. If we had not convened an inquiry, we would be heartless and unfeeling and having no concern for the people in the public; but, since we have convened an inquiry, we are now incompetent. You cannot have it both ways, Bill. You are a decent bloke and you know that you cannot have it both ways.
MR SPEAKER: Order! Your time has expired, Chief Minister.
MS FOLLETT (Leader of the Opposition): Mr Speaker, I seek leave to make a statement.
MR SPEAKER: Do you claim to have been misrepresented?
MS FOLLETT: Yes, I do. Mr Speaker, in the course of his remarks Mr Kaine brandished a document which he alleges is a copy of the speech that I gave on 13 September in reply to his budget. He alleges that I omitted certain sections of that speech. Mr Kaine has not asked me for a copy of my speech nor have I supplied him with one; so I cannot guarantee that what he is brandishing is, in fact, my speech. But I would refer you, Mr Speaker, to the proof copy of Hansard for 13 September, which contains the text of my speech on that day. I say in the Hansard - Mr Kaine, you have got it wrong again:
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