Page 5677 - Week 17 - Thursday, 5 December 1991
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(b) if any amendment moved or circulated by Members for consideration during the recommendation of any clauses after the detail stage has been completed, the Speaker shall, at 6.00 pm this day, put forthwith any question requisite to dispose of the business before the Assembly.
MR MOORE (3.44): Mr Speaker, this is a most appalling and disgraceful situation. We have been debating some aspects of this Bill for five years, and it comes to the Assembly and a declaration of urgency is carried by a Labor-Liberal combination. Mr Speaker, at this point I express my appreciation of your own vote in attempting to protect members' rights.
We have a situation where members have worked well on this Bill. They have debated carefully and have constantly refrained from filibustering. There has been no filibustering and no obfuscation at all on this Bill. This Assembly last week refused - appropriately - to apply this sort of procedure to what was the human rights and then no name Bill, until it became the Discrimination Bill; yet we now have a situation where we are about to cut debate.
The obvious thing in this situation is for me to move a number of amendments. I seek leave to move my two amendments together.
Leave granted.
MR MOORE: I move:
Paragraph 2(a), omit "5.30 pm", substitute "11.30 pm"; and
Paragraph 2(b), omit "6 pm", substitute "6 am, December 6".
Hopefully, we will not need to reach those times. I do not expect that we will.
MR DUBY (3.47): Mr Speaker, the house, not three minutes ago, passed a motion that this Bill be considered an urgent Bill. The will of the house has been expressed. For Mr Moore now to be moving amendments to this motion that follows as a result of that earlier motion is, frankly, a waste of time. The majority of members have spoken, and they have said that this is urgent. What flows from that is that this Bill will be dealt with this evening at the times specified. It is well known. I think that to attempt to amend this motion is not in keeping with the spirit of the motion that has just been passed. I certainly will not be supporting this amendment to Mr Berry's motion.
Mr Berry: Why didn't you vote yes as you said you would? Your soul will not be cleansed by this turnaround.
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