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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 3 Hansard (28 March) . . Page.. 791 ..

MR WHITECROSS (Leader of the Opposition) (12.48), in reply: Mr Speaker, the debate this morning has been important. It has raised some important issues about the way this Government goes about its business. The glib and superficial way that the Government has responded to the concerns being expressed by this house is a characteristic of the Government, Mr Speaker, that we are unfortunately only too familiar with. In the face of criticism from the parliament elected by the people to keep this Government accountable, this Government seeks to make light of their concerns.

Mr De Domenico: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. Under standing order 62, I suggest that relevance might come into it, Mr Speaker.

MR SPEAKER: Mr Whitecross, come back to the motion. I am sure that you are moving rapidly in that direction.

MR WHITECROSS: Thank you, Mr Speaker. I think it is all highly relevant. What we are talking about, Mr Speaker, is the arrogance of this Government and their lack of respect - - -

Mrs Carnell: We are not talking about that.

Mr Kaine: I thought we were talking about "recklessly misleading", not arrogance.

MR WHITECROSS: Mr Speaker, are you going to uphold the standing orders here?

MR SPEAKER: Order! Yes; go on.

MR WHITECROSS: We are talking about their disrespect for this chamber and their disrespect for the business of being accountable to this chamber. Mrs Carnell is the one who, as Mr Berry amply demonstrated, came in repeatedly, again and again, and said, "We have made these savings", and those savings have not been made. He gave chapter and verse. Mr De Domenico is always a useful deputy to have in these kinds of debates because he has more front than Myers. Not two minutes after Mr Berry got up and gave chapter and verse, he got up and said that Mr Berry provided no evidence.

Mrs Carnell: Mr Speaker, I take a point of order under standing order 62. You did suggest relevance and that he get there eventually.

MR SPEAKER: Order! I uphold the point of order. The motion talks about "recklessly misleading this house over the claimed savings". I am still waiting for us to get there. So far, all I have heard about is arrogance. Would you mind getting back to the motion, or I will have to rule you out of order.

MR WHITECROSS: Thank you, Mr Speaker. I would have thought that Mr Berry's clear information about where Mrs Carnell had misled again and again is extremely relevant. Mr Speaker, I am not surprised that they are taking lots of points of order, because they are all sitting there like Mr Glum, all of them with their heads down and their little frowns, because they know that they are doing a bad job. They know that they have to do better.

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