Page 4979 - Week 17 - Tuesday, 11 December 1990
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On those grounds we must oppose these Bills. Of course, you have also to note that, as with the Territory Owned Corporations Bill, they have been in such haste to prepare these pieces of legislation that they have been introduced with any number of drafting errors. It is now necessary for the Government to propose, on the run as it were, a range of corrections by way of amendment. It really ought to be made clear where the corrections are actually corrections to errors of drafting or other errors rather than amendments of the Bill.
Of course, as with all of the legislation that this Government has sought to ram through this house without proper consultation, the ACT community must be wondering why we are inflicted with such hastily drafted legislation that contains basic errors. What on earth is going on? It is not as though we have been overwhelmed with legislation all year. It is only this week that we have had anything resembling a workload; and most of it is wrong. There are amendments that I would personally find extremely embarrassing if I had to propose them as the Minister sponsoring this Bill.
As I say, our grounds, basically, for opposing this package of legislation are that there are none of the guarantees which we required for employees of Territory owned corporations. Particularly in relation to GALA, there is no good reason for doing what the Government proposes. They have not given us any good reason for doing it. They are merely following the Priorities Review Board agenda. I will not go along with that.
MR STEFANIAK (8.51): I rise to speak in support of these three Bills and to provide some further details of their effect. The repeal Bill introduces transitional provisions that preserve the legal effect of contracts, agreements and arrangements made by GALA. Contracts relating to gaming machine and liquor matters will become the legal responsibility of the Territory. Contracts relating to TAB functions will become the responsibility of the new TAB company, ACTTAB Ltd. All other rights and liabilities of GALA, as well as its assets, revert to the Territory, except to the extent that the Minister, who, in this case is the Attorney-General, transfers assets, rights and liabilities to the TAB before 1 July 1991.
The Government is, of course, committed to providing the TAB with adequate working capital. So, most of the current GALA assets that relate to TAB functions will be transferred to ACTTAB Ltd. The Bill sets a deadline for transfer of 1 July 1991 to allow for ongoing adjustments. A full audit of GALA's books and records will not be available immediately after its abolition. It may be that further transfers of assets, rights and liabilities will need to be made once that audit is available.
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