Page 2542 - Week 09 - Tuesday, 23 August 1994
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I accept that that, of all of them, could be considered to be a debatable item as much as a damnation of the Government. This report, Madam Speaker, is damning of the Government in many ways, but it is constructive. It is damning of the Government where they have failed to respond when, clearly, they have had the opportunity to do so. I think that this report should be quite an embarrassment to the Government.
I will add one final comment, Madam Speaker. I hear various members talk about the fact that the Estimates Committee was dominated by the Liberal Party, and that was true until Mr Westende resigned. Once Mr Westende resigned, there were only five members from the Liberal Party and there were five other members. Madam Speaker, considering the constructive nature of the report of the Estimates Committee - I think it is an excellent report - the Government should take it very seriously and respond to it in a very serious way.
MR CORNWELL (8.42): Madam Speaker, I was interested to hear Ms Ellis's comments at the beginning of her speech about the estimates process being biased. I do not believe, just as Mr Moore concluded in his speech, that that was the case at all. It was not necessarily dominated by the Liberal Party.
Mr Berry: Come on! I will give you a couple of references in a minute.
MR CORNWELL: Stop yapping over there, Mr Berry, because I am about to compliment you. You were one of the few Labor members who bothered to turn up when we were working out this report. Some of your colleagues were noticeable by their absence. I do not know whether that is a result, Madam Speaker, of factional brawling. Maybe a few of them decided that they were not going to show up. I suggest, Chief Minister, that you control some of your troops. Obviously, they were not prepared to come along and do the hard work that is involved in the Estimates Committee. Therefore, if anybody should be condemned for what may have turned up in this report it is the Labor members, because they failed to attend and to work through the recommendations in this report.
It is interesting that there is no dissenting view in this report. We heard a lot of talk by Mr Berry, but we did not hear any talk from Ms Ellis or Mrs Grassby about dissenting. Mr Berry mumbled that he was not going to agree with any of this report, but I do not see any dissenting report in this Estimates Committee report. Perhaps it indicates that, secretly, Mr Berry, and perhaps Ms Ellis and Mrs Grassby - I do not know - agree - - -
Mr Kaine: Agree with it.
MR CORNWELL: Agree with it. Indeed. Thank you, Mr Kaine. Perhaps they agree with it but are not prepared to put it in writing. We all know just how ruthless the Labor Party factions are. The point is: If you did not like what was being written, why did you not say something about it in writing and put it into this report? If you would like an adjournment while you lot caucus and sort out an answer to that, you are most welcome.
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