Page 752 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 12 March 1991
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Compare that approach to that adopted by Mr Berry when he was faced with problems. Mr Berry's approach, of course, was the ostrich approach: "Stick your head in the sand; it will hopefully go away". Mr Humphries has not acted in that way at all. I have complete confidence in him. He is Minister for Health, Education and the Arts, and I firmly reject any concept of a censure motion.
Ms Follett: That is not the answer I want; it is $12.4m.
Mr Kaine: That is another lie, and you know it. We have already been through that in your absence. You were not here; so you would not know.
Ms Follett: Mr Deputy Speaker, I ask Mr Kaine to withdraw that.
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: You are raising a point of order, Ms Follett? Yes, I think - - -
Mr Kaine: Mr Deputy Speaker, it is a deliberate distortion of the facts. I withdraw the word "lie".
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you, Chief Minister.
Ms Follett: Mr Deputy Speaker, I ask him to also withdraw "deliberate distortion of the facts". Mr Kaine himself has today provided me with an answer which details all of the sums which add up to $12.4m.
Mr Kaine: Mr Deputy Speaker, I have made it clear that most of those sums are not going to be adjusted. They in no way represent $12m worth of money that the Government is going to provide to supplement the budget. I have made that quite clear. For the Leader of the Opposition to continue to misrepresent that is just that; it is a misrepresentation.
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you, Chief Minister. I am aware of what the issue is. I do not think "deliberate distortion of the facts" is necessarily unparliamentary; it does not come under charges of lying or dishonesty. A distortion is not necessarily lying.
MR STEVENSON (4.47): There is strong agreement in this Assembly about health and expenditure of public moneys. They are things that we are very concerned with. Indeed, they are things that the people of Canberra are concerned with. Perhaps they are the two senior concerns. Unfortunately, there is much division in this Assembly on a matter such as a censure motion. What I would like to do is look at something that we can do about the problem to create better health and less expenditure.
I think this is something that in this Assembly we could have given, and can in the future give, far more attention to. I would lead in by indicating that the World Health Organisation at a Commonwealth health department meeting in
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