Page 827 - Week 03 - Thursday, 14 April 1994
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
Madam Speaker, you have raised the issue that this needs clarification, and I accept that it needs clarification. I also think that having the additional comments of Mr Lamont added is an inappropriate way to clarify the issue. I do not have a huge problem with having them there at this stage. I have a problem with the principle of having additional comments made to additional comments, because we do not know where it is going to end. If this Assembly wishes to say that a preface by a chair is part of a report and that is how we need to set out our process, and that a chair who wishes to make a dissenting comment or additional comments does so like any other member, that makes quite good sense. I can see that that makes quite good sense and I would accept that. But the reality is that, if I had made those same comments as additional comments, Mr Lamont would still wish to make additional comments to the additional comments.
Mr Kaine: As is his right.
MR MOORE: It is not his right. In no place in a report of this Assembly that I am aware of, unless a member can interject and give me an example, have we had additional comments to an additional set of comments.
Mr Kaine: We have not had a preface like that before, either, and you do not take exception to that.
MR MOORE: And in that case I say that this is what I consider an inappropriate process. Mr Kaine interjects that we have never had a preface like that, and waves it before me; but I point out that this was in many ways a very unusual committee that operated in a very public and unusual way. During the committee's deliberations the Labor Party made a major announcement in terms of their policy, and the Liberal Party made a major announcement with reference specifically to what was going on in the committee. That was particularly unusual, and it was those two announcements that I was responding to in that preface.
Madam Speaker, like anybody else in this chamber, I can read the numbers, and I understand that Mr Lamont's additional comments will be added to this report. In some ways it is unfortunate, that being the will of the Assembly, that over 200 copies of the report have already been distributed. That being the case, if it is the will of the Assembly - and I recognise the will of the Assembly - I am happy to talk to Mr Lamont about whether he wants his additional comments circulated to those same people. It is possible, if this motion is passed and he wants that done. Alternatively, if he is content for the additional comments to be included with the report from now on, we can work through that situation.
I still think we should have an opportunity for a preface not to be made the subject of additional comments; nor should we be able to have additional comments to additional comments. Perhaps, therefore, the most appropriate way to deal with this situation, recognising the will of the Assembly if this motion is carried, is to seek to have a system whereby the preface is considered to be part of the report. I think that would avoid this situation happening again, and it ought not to happen again, and would allow additional comments to be made to the preface.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .