Page 3637 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 8 December 1992
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Mrs Carnell: Is yours.
MR CONNOLLY: Madam Speaker, I will not say where the responsibility for that rests. I will let the community decide. I know how they will decide. Madam Speaker, I urge members to support the matter. I should also, before I sit down, formally present the explanatory memorandum, which was not formally presented, but I think was circulated.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Bill agreed to in principle.
MRS CARNELL (9.06): I move, pursuant to standing order 174:
That the Adoption Bill 1992 be referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy for consideration and that the Committee report back to the Assembly by 23 February 1993.
I will speak only briefly because I think everything has been said, and after those really quite outrageous comments by Mr Connolly it is very hard to speak at all. This motion includes the reporting date. If Mr Connolly's department moves appropriately to implement the pieces of the legislation which have been supported quite openly here tonight by all on this side of the house, the areas of the legislation that Mr Connolly's department suggested would take six months to get in place anyway, there should be no delay at all.
For the Social Policy Committee to report by 23 February is a very tight timeframe, but I put it forward in the motion because we understand the concerns of many groups in the community. It certainly does put pressure on the committee. I am fully aware of that and we spent a large amount of time deciding whether we should do so. Equally, everything done in this house should represent a balance between the rights of various people. I believe that the Social Policy Committee can bring down a report by that time, which will allow it to be debated in the next sitting.
I believe, quite strongly, that legislation of this magnitude, as I already commented in my speech, is too important to pass when many of us have not had an adequate opportunity to make sure that it does what the Minister says it does. We have had experiences of the other side of this house not getting it right. We do not want it to happen with this one. I again state that I do not believe that this motion will slow down the provision of information to those who want it, if the Minister chooses it not to.
MR CONNOLLY (Attorney-General, Minister for Housing and Community Services and Minister for Urban Services) (9.08): Madam Speaker, I want to make only two points. One concerns this complete furphy about six months. I asked my advisers some seconds ago how quickly we could be operational if we pass this Bill tonight. It is a matter of weeks. So, Madam Speaker, that is simply nonsense. The Opposition now claim that we could get ourselves geared up to be operational in any event. The problem is that we just do not know what you people want. It is basically open slather. If this Bill goes to the committee we just do not know what will come back. We do not know what your points are. It is complete fairyland stuff. So, Madam Speaker, let no-one have any confusion here; you are voting to delay the Bill.
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