Page 3950 - Week 13 - Thursday, 17 October 1991
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Tax increases have been kept to a minimum and no new borrowings have been made for general government purposes. The budget has been based on consultation with the community and I submit that it has the community's support. There is a focus on public sector efficiency and reductions in the cost of administration. When considering the budget issue, one has to compare our performance with that of the former Government, particularly when one listens to the accusations which have been made by Mr Kaine and Mr Humphries.
In response to a question from me, the former Health Minister said, on 19 February, as recorded in Hansard:
At this stage I have received no advice of any variation in the patterns of expenditure on the part of the hospital system, vis-a-vis the budget. I therefore operate on the assumption that the budget is on track.
The former Minister was later quoted, on 26 February, as saying:
The vast bulk of the problem is of a standard and customary nature and occurs in many departments annually and is certainly no cause for alarm.
There are 17 million reasons why there was cause for alarm. That is the real fact of the matter; it fell apart. What he was doing was denying to the community of the ACT that there was anything wrong in the health budget, which later proved to be untrue. It was later shown that the Minister knew what was going on, quite contrary - - -
Mr Humphries: Mr Deputy Speaker, I think Mr Berry is implying that, in some way, because I knew that things were going wrong and did not say so to the house, I was in some way misleading the house or the community. I ask him to withdraw that allegation.
MR BERRY: Mr Deputy Speaker, there is nothing for me to withdraw. The point that I am trying to make on this issue will become evident.
Mr Connolly: Mauvaise foi.
MR BERRY: I am not sure whether it was one of those. The chief accuser, Mr Kaine, said, on 21 February, in response to a question in relation to the health budget:
I cannot answer that question off the top of my head, Mr Speaker. I have seen figures on the operating budget - - -
Mr Humphries: Mr Deputy Speaker, Mr Berry indicated that I knew that there was something wrong, even though I said to the Assembly that there was nothing wrong in the health budget. That clearly implies that I was misleading the Assembly, and I ask him to withdraw it.
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