Page 4821 - Week 16 - Monday, 25 November 1991
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I find it absolutely ridiculous that we are making decisions about something in respect of which there is a review under way. To start making decisions about the ACT courts when there is a national review under way is rather ridiculous. Mr Collaery makes the mistake of taking on too many issues that are Federal issues and which have nothing to do with the ACT. There are no votes really, if that is what he is thinking of, in an issue like this.
Interpreting in a court is important. I would agree with that. It is important also in hospitals. We all understand what happened in the early years of migrants coming to this country. A cook would be dragged out of the kitchen to speak to a patient and translate what the doctor was saying to the patient. We all know what absolute disasters occurred. It caused many a problem. The cook found it difficult to put medical terms into his language and the patient's language. He did not have that knowledge and therefore could not do it.
Thank goodness that today there is an interpreter service in the health area. It is an excellent interpreter service. There is also the telephone service. If people have problems they can go to a phone and ring up an interpreter service and immediately contact somebody who is able to speak to them. Interpreters in this city are already doing a great job at the moment.
Why do we need this legislation at this particular moment? I cannot see any benefit from it. As I say, with a review going on, I feel that it is an absolute waste of time and money to do it. Why cannot we wait and see what the national review reveals about it and then take it on? I just think it is a bit of grandstanding. I do not think it is going to pick up any votes in the ethnic community.
The other thing I cannot understand is this: If Mr Collaery really thought this was such an important thing to do, why did he not do it when he was Attorney-General? He certainly had plenty of time to do it. It was well over six months; yet nothing was done. Why, at this particular moment, does Mr Bernard Collaery think that this is the time to jump on the band wagon and raise the banner? Does he believe that this is going to get him lots of votes in the ethnic community?
I can tell him right now that it is not going to have that effect, because I have spoken to them about this. The Ethnic Communities Council is very interested and is waiting to see what comes out of this national review. They want to know what is absolutely necessary in this sort of thing. We might find, when the review comes out, that we need more than just court interpreters who speak many languages; we may need a lot better service than what we are looking at in this Bill. It may not be good enough.
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