Page 2160 - Week 07 - Thursday, 16 June 1994
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the passage of the Public Sector Management Bill and the Public Sector Management (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Bill be deferred (but not beyond the 1994 Spring Sittings of the Legislative Assembly).
I, of course, have some sympathy with that view and support that view. However, I believe that we are making some progress in addressing the needs of those employees who are still unhappy with the provisions of the Bill. I understand the Government's need to meet the expected timetable of 1 July 1994. However, I believe that we need to balance the need to introduce the separate ACT Government Service as soon as possible with the need for us to take as much time as we need to consider the issues in the Bill fairly carefully.
We also need to take into account what is happening in the Federal Parliament. Several members of this Assembly have addressed those matters previously. We also need to be conscious of the Industrial Relations Commission timetable and of various negotiations which are continuing at present. I understand that representatives of the Trades and Labour Council had a meeting today with the Federal Minister responsible for public service matters, Gary Johns. I have not heard the outcome of that particular meeting, but I would be pleased to hear its outcome.
I am also aware of the possibility of an arbitration hearing taking place on Monday, 20 June - just next week - and the possibility of three further days being set aside for arbitration in early July. I am also aware that there are expectations that the Senate will have addressed the legislation by 30 June. We are working towards, I hope, a satisfactory completion of the Public Sector Management Bill which will satisfy the requirements of all members of this Assembly. I am pleased that later today we will be scheduling another sitting of this Assembly for Wednesday of next week. I certainly hope that we will have all final amendments that members want to propose to the Bill by the close of business tomorrow so that we can think about them over the weekend. I am pleased that we are due to have a round table discussion on the issues on Monday. I hope that that will go some way towards resolving the concerns that we have about the Bill and enable us to complete our deliberations on Wednesday of next week. I certainly believe that that is possible.
MR LAMONT (Minister for Urban Services, Minister for Housing and Community Services, Minister for Industrial Relations and Minister for Sport) (9.41): Madam Speaker, I seek leave to speak again on this matter.
Leave granted.
MR LAMONT: Madam Speaker, I rise to address a number of points, particularly those in the presentation of Mrs Carnell. To me, it is obvious that Mrs Carnell has failed to understand the basis upon which there is opposition from the PSU to the transfer to a separate ACT public service. She has failed to understand also where the difficulties with that lie, so I will take some time in order to enlighten her.
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