Page 1323 - Week 05 - Thursday, 25 June 1992
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Mr Connolly: Or an extract from it that he was reading from.
MR DE DOMENICO: Or an extract, Mr Connolly. Correct. Why did Mr Lamont not table either the document that he was allegedly reading from and was asked to table or the extract?
Mr Connolly: He did not know which document you wanted.
MR DE DOMENICO: He did know, because he tabled it this afternoon. All of a sudden he found it. His staff went to it this afternoon. All of a sudden this document that he had never heard of before in his life was found and tabled. Our question is, "Why did Mr Lamont not table it when not I but this Assembly asked him to table it?". Why did he not table it then, Mr Berry?
Mr Kaine: Because he thumbed his nose at the Assembly.
MR DE DOMENICO: As Mr Kaine correctly says, because he thumbed his nose at this Assembly. That is the issue, Madam Speaker. You might smile, across the other side; but, as I said to you in that back room, it does not give me any pleasure whatsoever to have to do this today, because, Mr Berry - - -
Mr Connolly: Not half!
MR DE DOMENICO: You be quiet, Crusher. Mr Berry, I went to see Mr Lamont yesterday, privately, and I said, "David, mate, I reckon you have tabled the wrong document. Why don't you fix it now?". He said, "No; go away. It is the correct document that I tabled and I was only using that as a debating tactic". That is what Mr Lamont said to me yesterday. If you check your facts even further, Mr Berry, before I went to Mr Lamont I sought advice from a great number of people, some of whom you know very well, and I will not mention them. If you are going to start getting sanctimonious, I also will get sanctimonious.
Madam Speaker, the issue at hand today is that in my opinion Mr Lamont did not table the document that he was asked to table by this Assembly. Mr Lamont obviously knew which document we were referring to because, all of a sudden, under censure because you gagged us, under censure this afternoon - - -
Ms Follett: Madam Speaker, I raise a point of order. Mr De Domenico has made the statement that the Government gagged the Opposition. The result of that vote, Madam Speaker, was on your ruling, and I believe that Mr Domenico is casting aspersions on the Chair's ruling.
MR DE DOMENICO: Madam Speaker, if there is any indication of me casting aspersions on your ruling, that is not the case. If you find that I have, I apologise. I would withdraw any indication of aspersion on your ruling.
Madam Speaker, as I was saying, after we were prevented from clearing the air by people on the other side of the house, and we had to go to censure to do it, all of a sudden Mr Lamont found the document that he could not find on the night that he was asked to by this Assembly. As I said before, he was asked not by me but by the whole of the Assembly. Madam Speaker, I suggest that Mr Lamont deserves to be censured, as this Government deserves to be censured, and it is about time we got in this Assembly the standards that are expected of it by the people of Canberra.
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