Page 203 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 13 February 1991
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
So, Mr Humphries, you make my point for me. You come back, as you have before, to the schools that were closed by the Federal Government in 1988. Since you say it again, I will say it again: The ALP, in the Territory, bitterly resisted those closures. You certainly were not with us when we trekked up to Parliament House to see the Minister; you were not with us at our conferences, when we bitterly opposed it, and our policy stated that we were opposed to those school closures. Since you are a member of the Liberal Party, you may recognise that there are times, not infrequently in the history of this nation, when State parties are at odds with their Federal counterparts; whether it is Labor against Labor or Liberal against Liberal. There is nothing unusual about that.
So, we bitterly resisted those proposals, because the established policy of the ALP in this Territory has been for a long time that we are opposed to school closures. There is no question about that.
Mr Collaery: That is not your policy. That is not your written policy.
MR WOOD: I have heard you read our policy, but then you do not read the entire policy. We have been down this track often enough before.
Mr Collaery: Well, table your entire policy.
MR WOOD: We have. Mr Berry has had it out before. Our policy was never anything but absolutely clear that we would not close schools. We have had this debate before; but I do not mind saying that I was substantially responsible for drafting that policy, so I well know what I am talking about. I well know what Mr Jensen and Mr Collaery have quoted in this chamber before. I will quote to you the policy that we launched our campaign with: "Schools will not close during the life of this parliament". We came down with that, and you have been told that a dozen times; but you do not want to accept that.
We have consistently, and over a long period, opposed the closures of schools. We opposed them when the Federal Minister proposed them - our Federal Minister, and I regret that it was our Federal Minister. We opposed them, and we will continue to oppose them. We are consistent. We do not do the Rally stunt of promising one day to give more money to education - what was it, Mr Collaery, $7m? - and then - - -
Mr Collaery: Mr Moore made that promise.
MR WOOD: Mr Moore, on behalf of you as leader of the Residents Rally, may have made that statement. We did not embark on the course of saying one thing, of promising one thing in an election campaign, and then turning around and doing something entirely different. So long as Mr
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .