Page 4606 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 20 November 1991
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We then were given an initial indication that they might be available, but the Minister came back and said that these figures would not be available. I think, Mr Speaker, it is appropriate for the amendment that Mr Moore has proposed to go ahead, provided the Minister gives this undertaking.
I noted the Minister's comments in relation to the requirement to amend the Act. I suggest that we do not need to amend the Act because this particular problem, we hope, can be resolved very shortly. It will then be unnecessary for these sorts of reports to be provided. We would then expect to see the normal audited annual reports meeting the requirements.
I suggest to members and to the community in the ACT that the health budget - one of the biggest parts of the budget in the ACT - must be kept under control. That has been one of the problems. Certainly, there was a blow-out. There has been a blow-out of the budgets of the first two health Ministers in relation to health; but, if one calculates those figures on a monthly basis, one will see that Mr Berry's record is worse than Mr Humphries'.
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The Enfield report was produced to bring the health budget back on track and back under control. I do not believe that anyone would suggest for a moment that that is not a necessary requirement. It is probably appropriate for the Board of Health to be given all the necessary support by this Assembly to do what is, in fact, a difficult task. Considerable problems have built up over a number of years.
Mr Speaker, in my final remarks on this issue I would like to comment on the general attitude of the Minister we are talking about in this censure motion today. A couple of weeks ago in this Assembly I asked the Minister a question in relation to the Tuggeranong pool. The Minister declined to provide any reasoned answer to the question. In fact, after question time, as we were leaving the house, I said to the Minister, "You did not answer my question on the pool". Mr Berry said to me, "I did not want your question and I am not going to give you an answer, anyway".
That is the sort of attitude that, unfortunately, this Minister brings to question time. One of the reasons why there is so much aggravation and concern is the way Mr Berry handles himself during question time. Mr Berry appears to be adopting an attitude a bit like that of some of the quartermasters that we used to have in the Army in the old days - "I have it; you try to get it". Basically, that is the problem. Mr Berry is not prepared to provide information for this Assembly and for the people of the ACT.
It seems to me that he does not want to have the matters for which he is responsible subjected to the scrutiny of this Assembly. Frankly, Mr Speaker, that is what parliaments are all about. That is what question time is all about. Question time is about the issue of Ministers
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