Page 2944 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 14 September 1994
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
proper and appropriate consideration. It is hypocritical for people to accuse me of using the ACT as a social laboratory but then to argue that this legislation should be rushed through without going through the normal processes of this Assembly. Madam Speaker, what we have is a very sensible and very normal process.
While I am on the issue of hypocrisy, there is something else that I nearly missed. We have Mr Stevenson sitting here, advocating CIR. He would inflict it on the people of Canberra in the same way as he perceives that self-government was inflicted on the people of Canberra by the Federal Government. So, where do we stand and how do we handle the issue? That is an appropriate question. Perhaps the appropriate way to do it is to put this issue, by way of referendum, to the people of Canberra.
That brings me to the final point I wanted to make. The series of quotes that Mrs Carnell conveniently took out of context did not have anything at all to do with citizens-initiated referenda; they had to do with my suggesting that referenda be decided by this Assembly and be put by the people of Canberra. Mr Stevenson was very quick to draw the distinction. I think that the terms he used were "politician-initiated referenda" as opposed to "citizens-initiated referenda". So, there clearly was a major distinction between what I was proposing at that time and this particular committee.
Madam Speaker, I am very comfortable with the notion of citizens-initiated referenda. In principle, it seems like a good idea on the surface; but we have to consider those other issues. We have to consider the impact of the possible removal of compulsory voting. We have to consider how this might be used by the sorts of groups that Mr Mackerras refers to as elite interest groups. They are issues of principle, and the appropriate way to deal with them is by referring this concept and these two pieces of legislation to a committee.
MR DE DOMENICO (4.56): Madam Speaker, I rise very briefly to respond to what Mr Moore has said. Mr Moore, the Liberal Party is happy to send the Bills to the committee, but you have just voted against the motion to do that. That is point No. 1.
Mr Moore: No, I did not.
MR DE DOMENICO: You have. You just voted against an amendment that said:
The Committee shall compare the provisions of the Bills with other similar laws in operation in Australia and other countries.
That is what the Assembly just voted down. That is point No. 1. We have just done it, five minutes ago.
Mr Moore: Mr De Domenico, you misunderstand.
MR DE DOMENICO: No, I do not misunderstand. I have not finished with you yet. You are not going to get away so lightly. Madam Speaker, Mr Moore is one member of this Assembly that never backflips! He has never done a backflip in his life! Mr Moore and Ms Szuty publicly stated 18 months ago that they support citizens-initiated referenda.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .