Page 373 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 23 February 1993
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The fact of life is that there is no reason at all to consider these Bills in this sitting week. Take for example the health Bills that have been brought forward. I understand that the decision by the chairman of the Board of Health to resign was made back in November, and I am sure the decision was taken long before that by this Government that it should, at the first opportunity, abandon the present structure - - -
Mrs Carnell: In about 1989, I think.
MR HUMPHRIES: Indeed, in 1989 it decided to move for a structure of health provision in this Territory which did not include a Board of Health. Now, given this long lead time, why should it be that we get legislation in week one of the February sittings and are expected to debate it into law in week two of the February sittings? What is the reason for that? None other than the fact that either you cannot get yourselves organised as a government or you set deadlines with your public servants, those who draft this legislation for you, which say that the real deadline is a few days before it has to be passed into law. You say that that is the real deadline because the Assembly will swallow whatever garbage you put up because you are the Government. It is not good enough and we will not.
Madam Speaker, I do not think anybody here, Mr Moore included, can sit in this place and say, "I believe that we have legislation here which is good legislation because I have properly digested it and I have consulted on it".
Mr Berry: I can.
MR HUMPHRIES: You might. You might because you have had the benefit of having looked at the legislation for quite some time. We and the public of this Territory have not been so privileged.
Mr Connolly: If you were doing your job instead of Federal electioneering you would be right.
MR HUMPHRIES: It is not a question of doing our job. Nobody can expect - - -
Ms Follett: Stop pumping petrol and read your Bills.
MR HUMPHRIES: It is not a question of reading the Bills, Chief Minister; it is a question of having proper time. How many citizens of the Territory do you think have read the Bills that you introduced last week in this Assembly? I can tell you - almost none.
This is the Government that talks about consultation. Where do you get consultation with seven days to debate the Bills into law? What do you think this Assembly is - a sort of sausage factory? The fact is that it is not. This Government treats the processes of democracy with contempt when it brings legislation forward with this short timeframe. I recall what was said by one of our Independents in this place - I think it might have been Mr Moore - in the middle of last year when we were faced with a similar situation; when we were faced with a whole succession of Bills being put through the Assembly with very little notice indeed. He said to me, as I recall, "Do not worry; I think the Government has learnt its lesson". It will not be doing this again, in other words; it has learnt its lesson. The fact of life is, Madam Speaker, that it has not learnt its lesson.
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