Page 414 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 19 February 1991
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Clearly Tony Fleming, for instance, got a huge vote but was not elected, and it is our view that that is a misfortune that should not have occurred.
That puts an entirely different complexion on my comments. If you read my comments in context you will see that, earlier in that exchange, at page 187, in response to the chairman's question, I said:
It is an acceptable process when it provides the maximum democratic representation.
That was in response to a question about how we would decide whether the next election is successful or not. The chairman asked:
Does it depend on your membership in the next Assembly?
Clearly, Mr Speaker, I denied that that would be the rationale. I said:
... when it provides the maximum democratic representation.
I just want to exemplify, for the purposes of this Hansard, the shallowness, the tactics, the discreditable manner in which this party opposite operates in this chamber. It is a sad day when Mr Connolly joins that. We all anticipated that Mr Connolly would bring something better to the chamber when he was appointed here. I think Mr Connolly should go away and think again about that type of tactic, particularly as Mr Berry is foreshadowing again a proposal that we have a motion on single member electorates. If anything is there to ensure that you are re-elected, it is that system.
I believe that that should be on the record to demonstrate the lack of credibility, the dirty tricks campaign that has already started in this town and what is going to happen for the rest of the year. We can foreshadow the performance in this chamber. I believe that the message will get out as to what we are going to see from this Labor group opposite. I exclude Mr Wood from the comments. He is probably feeling a bit uneasy.
Mr Kaine: He is probably squirming.
MR COLLAERY: Yes, because he is not part of this factional battle. Mr Speaker, the other very disparaging point Mr Connolly made was that we had self-selected ourselves. Well, that was an honest answer.
Ms Follett: You said it yourself.
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