Page 4591 - Week 16 - Tuesday, 27 November 1990
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MR BERRY (3.38), in reply: Mr Speaker, Mr Humphries got it right for a change. I do not trust this ministry because we know what they are up to. This ministry is about delaying this question, and has been from the outset. That, in particular, is an appropriate accusation for Mr Collaery because he is the one who is going to be embarrassed over this issue. This issue of debate is over important private members' legislation, in particular the Bills which deal with the closure of Royal Canberra Hospital and the Bill which deals with the closure of schools, which his party, allegedly from the executive level, seems to resist. The fact of the matter is that they are dawdling deliberately. They are doing it to avoid further debate on the issue and, of course, to avoid further notice of their positions. We want to see how these people opposite vote on these issues. We know where they stand on them, but we cannot find out how they will vote because they will not debate the issue.
Mr Collaery has the audacity to talk about the Opposition being naive on the issue of the seeking of advice. Mr Collaery has the gall to suggest that anybody else is naive. The fact of the matter is that on the issue that he was talking about, the procurement of advice, it is well known that one can get advice within the timeframe that one sets. You seek advice from a quality lawyer and you can set the timeframe, because lawyers, after all, work for the people who engage them. That is the point at issue.
What Mr Collaery wants to do, of course, is shillyshally around, delay the issue more and make sure that it is not debated this year because the Residents Rally is in deep trouble. The tensions which have grown within the Alliance Government have been exacerbated by these two Bills and they want to keep putting the matter off. They are very quiet over there. There is a deathly silence. The fact of the matter is that they are very sensitive about this issue. Mr Collaery demonstrated his sensitivity when he started to moan about the likely existence of a media release that might expose him on the matter. Well, if they agree with the motion there is no likelihood. That cannot be said, of course, if there is disagreement to what is a very sensible motion. It is a motion about getting this issue resolved in order that the credibility of even the Residents Rally party can be placed under the microscope again.
What in fact the Deputy Chief Minister has said is that he is dawdling on this issue because he says that there can be no deadline. Now, he is out of step with the Chief Minister again, or the Chief Minister is not quite on the ball about this issue because the Chief Minister says that there is one, but it is a reasonable one, it is an open-ended one. What a joke! The fact of the matter is that the Government is dawdling on this issue. The Chief Minister does not really know what is going on. He does
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