Page 418 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 19 February 1991
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Mr Speaker, I think we are getting down to tintacks with this motion. The Federal Parliament in the next few weeks will be engaging in an important debate on the ACT's electoral system. While that debate is going on presently behind closed doors in the Federal Parliament, it will, after the next few weeks, become a public debate, a debate on the floor of the House of Representatives and the Senate, and I would be surprised if at that time there was no regard for the views of people who live in the ACT. Clearly there are divisions in the Federal Parliament. There are, clearly, different views not only between parties but also within parties about what the best system for the ACT is. In those circumstances it is hard to imagine a decision on an electoral system for the ACT being taken without the wishes of the people who live in the ACT being taken into account.
We speak in this place for all Canberrans. We have a mandate to do that. We have all been elected to this place, with one possible exception, and we all have a right to express views on behalf of the citizens of Canberra. On occasions such as this I think an onus falls on us as representatives of Canberra to express a view and to give guidance to the Federal Parliament about what we see as priorities in the debate on an electoral system for the ACT. It does not mean that we can guide the Federal Parliament on what electoral system the ACT should have because, clearly, there are many views around this room and that would be a process which was unproductive. For that reason I will be voting against the proposed amendment of paragraph (3) of this motion which is to be put forward by Mr Berry. It runs counter to the spirit of this motion.
More importantly, we need to express clearly, concisely and firmly at this time what we see as priorities for Canberra, and to express them in such a way that the Federal Parliament will take notice of that when the debate is held on what system the ACT should have for future elections. It is, after all, a matter over which we, the people of the ACT, should have control. To have that debate in the Federal Parliament is itself something of a travesty. It is a matter which ought ultimately to go on in this place in future years.
Mr Berry said in his comments in the earlier debate that negotiations on this matter are well down the track and suggested that there was not much point in our adding our two bits worth. I have to say that with respect to the matters mentioned in this motion there is very clearly still an opportunity for the ACT Assembly to influence events and that is why this motion is being moved, in particular paragraph (3). This motion makes it very clear that, of all the options being examined for Canberra at the present time, we in this Assembly will have no truck with an arrangement which denies Canberrans the right to cast a preferential vote.
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