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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 7 Hansard (19 June) . . Page.. 1939 ..

MR HUMPHRIES (continuing):

Mr Speaker, I think anybody in this place who has a short memory - I accept that the Greens might be in that position because they were not here in the last Assembly - might not think that our record was much to crow about; but they certainly should not be accepting any motion handed down from those opposite in the environment of their own appalling industrial relations record. I do not know whether any work has been done in recent days to compare the industrial relations record of the former Government with that of this Government; but I do recall that an assessment was done in 1990 comparing the record of days lost in industrial action under the Alliance Government with that under the former Follett minority Government of 1989. It showed that the then Alliance Government had achieved a much better industrial record in terms of days lost than had the former Labor Government. Mr Speaker, I think that probably still stands. However, that is all ancient history; let us put it to one side.

I have to say on behalf of Mr Stefaniak that I resent the constant allegations made in this matter - particularly by Mr Moore in this respect - that, if Mr Stefaniak in particular does not agree with the line that Mr Moore is pushing, Mr Stefaniak does not understand what is happening and what the problems are in education. Mr Speaker, I have heard that line time and time again from Mr Moore and also from those opposite. I reject the assertion - and I am sure that Mr Stefaniak does too - that, merely because someone does not agree with the point of view you are putting forward, therefore they cannot understand what the issues are. That is a very poor logical argument to put forward in this matter.

Mr Stefaniak has spent considerable effort in talking to the union - more than some opposite have done in previous disputes - trying to understand what is going on; talking to the Council of Parents and Citizens Associations; and discussing with individual schools, school boards, principals, officers of the Education Department and many others what it is that is making this dispute carry forward and what we can do to try to bring this dispute to a head. The answers, frankly, are not simple. If the answers were simple, presumably Mr Berry and his colleagues would be able to tell us what the answers are to resolve this dispute; but they cannot. All they can suggest is a conciliatory environment - whatever that is - to settle this dispute. Apparently, it does not involve talking to the union, because that is not what Mr Berry used to do when he was Minister.

Mrs Carnell: The CFMEU would get really cross with him.

MR HUMPHRIES: The CFMEU used to call the tune in those days, and still does, obviously. Mr Temporary Deputy Speaker, this rubbish we are hearing from those opposite is really too much to grasp. There is a dispute going on between the Australian Education Union and the Government. (Extension of time granted) The motion says, not surprisingly - presumably, the Greens support this - that it must be the Government's fault that there is a dispute of that kind.

Ms McRae: Of course it is.

MR HUMPHRIES: "Of course it is", says Ms McRae. She is showing her true colours: Do not ask any questions; do not probe behind this; if there is a dispute between a Liberal government and a union, it must be the Liberal government's fault. I note that all the disputes that we were peppered with in the former Assembly were the unions' fault,

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