Page 1074 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 23 June 1992
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First of all, they should have the time to find out that there is such a proposal. If it is not reported in the media extensively, or if they happen to be away for a couple of days or do not particularly watch the media, then they might miss it. They need time.
Mr Berry: They will inevitably miss something.
MR STEVENSON: But, Mr Berry, though they might miss something, our role is to ensure that constituents understand what is going on. We should take every action that we can to make sure that that happens. When people find out that there is a proposal, they need the time to obtain the Bill. An important Bill will be debated later on today - the Termination of Pregnancy (Repeal) Bill. They need not only time to obtain that Bill but also time to obtain the Act that it repeals - and that could be harder, I think you would agree.
Once they have the Bill, they need to be able to read the Bill. They also need to study the legislative proposals - the fine print, and all aspects of all clauses of the Bill. They then may wish to hold group meetings within their organisation. They may also wish to hold public meetings to present their case to the broader public or to hear what people generally feel about the different proposals or the legislation that has been presented. At that time they should also have the opportunity to fully consider the implications of such a Bill. It is not just what is said within the Bill. I think the perfect example of that is the Termination of Pregnancy (Repeal) Bill. Mr Berry has been asked, "Does this mean that in the very near future a taxpayer funded abortion clinic will be established in the ACT?". The fact that there is a Bill before the house may not be the whole point. There may be other implications that people need time to find out about and to discuss and to talk over with their members.
It is well known that some people have extreme difficulty in seeing some of the members in this Assembly. I have had a number of people approach me and tell me that a number of members simply refuse to see them. When I first heard these things, I thought they could not be right. That was slightly naive of me, but I could not believe that public servants, members of this Assembly, would not see the people who hire them and pay their salaries, the people they are supposed to serve. But it has happened all too often for me to disbelieve it any more. I am quite convinced that it happens, although I wonder how regularly it happens. So we need time for consultation with MLAs. I fully grant that there might be times when all members are busy, are away, are in meetings and so on, and they may not be able to talk to a person at that time. But there should be time for people to make an appointment and then see their MLAs.
As members would well know, we poll Canberrans on many issues. That takes considerable time. It is not always easy to ask a fair question. I suggest that the best time to design the question is once the legislation has been proposed. A couple of times we have asked questions and then the legislation has been tabled, and we have found out that we have actually been asking the wrong questions. The proposal has been different from what has been discussed in the community or what had been suggested at an earlier time.
Another important factor is that once Bills are tabled members of this Assembly, or members of the community, may feel that there are worthwhile amendments to be made. We all know that, on the last day when Bills are about to be debated,
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