Page 1369 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 12 May 1993
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that the principal role of the Liberal Party in the ACT over the next two years is to knock you lot out of the government benches. There was unanimous and unqualified reaffirmation of that fact. Is somebody going to tell me that my leader and I differ on that? If they believe that - - -
Ms Follett: We were not there.
MR KAINE: If you believe that you are wrong. The second thing that came out of that session on Sunday was that the Liberal Party needed to do what it has done before - it is not the first time - to reassess what it was that this community wanted from its Government. We went through this exercise a little over a year ago, leading up to the last election, and I am sure that the Labor Party did too, but with the effluxion of time people's attitudes change. So what is it that the people want? There is only one way you find that out. You go and ask them. Mr Stevenson has his methods and the Liberal Party has theirs, and they are not quite the same. But there is absolute unanimity on that second point. We have to find out what it is that the community wants. Unlike the Labor Party, we do not assume that we know. Again, if anybody thinks that Kate Carnell and I are divided on that issue they are patently and obviously wrong.
Then the public debate started. Kate Carnell attempted to explain on public radio what the outcomes were and Matthew Abraham said that there has been a policy shift on the part of the Liberal Party. There has been no policy shift at all. The Liberal Party has, for five years now, wholeheartedly supported the concept of self-government.
Mr Connolly: "'... you'd create ... a Liberal Party policy, going to the next election supporting a city council style of government, or administration in the ACT?'. Mrs Carnell: 'Simply put, yes'."
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order!
MR KAINE: Mr Deputy Speaker, I do not think that I should have to debate this with all of the members of the Labor Party at once.
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: I would remind the Attorney-General that he will have his chance.
MR KAINE: There is still a basic Liberal Party policy, as has always been the case, supportive of self-government for the Territory. But when you start saying to the community, "We want to know what you think", are you then at the same time going to say, "We do not care what you think; we are not going to do anything about it"? There is something that flows from a community consultation process. I know that the Labor Party does not want to know about that, but when you start a community consultation process you have to make it clear that the answer that you get back is something that you will consider seriously and see what you can do about implementing. If you do not do that it is a charade, and that is what the Labor Party does constantly. They talk about consultation. They go out and they ask people, like the last ratepayers survey which got stuffed under the carpet for six months because they did not want to admit what the community told them. We do not operate that way. We are interested in hearing what the community has to say, and, having said that, we have to give some sort of a commitment that we will listen to what they say and do what we can to put their wishes into effect.
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