Page 4142 - Week 14 - Wednesday, 23 October 1991
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One of the agreements that we had between all non-Labor members in this Assembly was to introduce the right of any member to pay consultants if that was what they felt was going to allow them to best represent the people of Canberra, their constituents. That was agreed upon by 12 members of this Assembly, but unfortunately it was never introduced. It is unfortunate that Mr Collaery, in introducing this particular amendment, did not include the right of all members in this Assembly to choose to use their budget to hire consultants.
They may from time to time need legal advice in drafting Bills. Also mentioned in this Assembly this morning was the difficulty of getting legal drafting support. So, it would be opportune, at different times, for members to have the right to hire legal drafting assistance. There are many other areas. Accountancy qualifications would be very useful. There are many who could rightly be called a consultant; yet, unfortunately, members do not have that opportunity to best represent their constituents in that way.
As for the specific amount of money paid to individual representatives in the parliament, I think there has been talk throughout the history of this parliament about a committee of the whole. Would not government work far better if we really understood what government means? Government does not mean - and I have made this point again and again, and will continue to make it - the party that controls the Assembly. It never has in Australia and I doubt that it ever legally will. I grant that many people have been taught that we have a government and an opposition, but I challenge them to show me where the constitutional law of Australia sets up that system. I make this challenge again and openly to all members.
To refer to the ACT Legislative Assembly as "my Government" is an absurdity when you look at the constitutional requirements of government. It is not Rosemary Follett's Government. It was not Trevor Kaine's Government. It was not anybody's government in this Assembly. If it was not unconstitutional it would be the people's government, and it would not just include the number of people who, because of some system, were able to exercise control, be they nine members in the Assembly, which would be a majority, or fewer. It is a point that should be understood, rather than just blindly thinking that the current system that has been pushed onto us by political parties in Australia is actually a sound system.
It is not a sound system. I think the actions of what has happened in this Assembly shows that. Many members in this Assembly have excellent qualifications and abilities. Every one of us has knowledge in certain areas, has heavily researched some areas, and could speak well and validly on different aspects. Yet, though we can speak in this Assembly, most of us know that that does not necessarily mean anything. What is important is what is happening at the moment - the lobbying.
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