Page 4317 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 7 December 1993
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Mr Berry: No, the Government has done a great job and the Opposition cannot milk a headline out of it. Even in your headline-hunting exercise, you have not been able to get a headline out of this one, Kate.
MRS CARNELL: That is because I support it. I am very interested in this. Mr Berry has made some very interesting comments about headline milking. I think the first time I met the Minister was when I was lobbying him for exactly these provisions in the Act. I promise you that I will not headline grab.
Mr Connolly: Ask and you shall receive, Mrs Carnell.
MRS CARNELL: It took a very long time, Mr Connolly, thank you very much. I think one of the most important things that need to be addressed here tonight is something that I found very, very interesting when I was attempting to - - -
Mr Berry: Really interesting, even.
MRS CARNELL: Very, very interesting, Madam Speaker - when I was attempting to determine whether the various chairmen of the boards - - -
Mr Lamont: Chairpersons.
MRS CARNELL: Chairpersons, because there is one woman - were happy about these pieces of legislation. What I did, as I suspect every other shadow spokesperson in their various areas would have done, was to send out the Bills to the chairpersons of the various boards. The letters went out to the chairperson, Pharmacy Board; the chairperson, Optometrists Board; the chairperson, Chiropractic and - - -
Mr Cornwell: I would not have responded if I had been addressed that way.
MRS CARNELL: You are right, Mr Cornwell; I did not get a response from them. Whom did I get a response from? From Mr Berry. To my knowledge, Mr Berry is not the chairperson of any professional board, let alone the three that I sent the Bills to. I do not know about you, Madam Speaker, but when I send a letter to a particular person I usually get a response from that person. But that is not the case when you send a letter to anybody who is even moderately associated with ACT Health. So it was, I must admit, to my great surprise, that I got a letter back from Mr Berry, after I had sought to consult with the various people that were affected by it.
Mr Berry: What did it say?
MRS CARNELL: I think I will just quote from the letter. Remember that this letter was to the people whom this legislation affects, the people who are going to have to implement it. I get a letter back from Mr Berry, not the people involved, saying:
I have been advised that all three Boards have been highly satisfied with the degree of consultation in the preparation of the amending Bills and have had adequate opportunity to discuss the issues of concern -
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