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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 8 Hansard (26 June) . . Page.. 2165 ..

MR SPEAKER: Order! What is your point of order, Mr Berry?

Mr Berry: Mr Speaker, I do not have time to distil this into single syllables. I will read it again.

MR SPEAKER: No, you do not have to read it again.

Mr Berry: I asked: Does the Minister really want teachers to actually teach more hours each week?

MR SPEAKER: There is no point of order.

MR STEFANIAK: I am answering his question, Mr Speaker. What I am concerned about is that we end up with a settlement to this dispute. If we can come up with one before we get into the detail of the Industrial Relations Commission, well and good; the sooner the better, as far as the Government is concerned. Mr Berry, I am not particularly concerned about what productivity offers are given, as long as something is come up with which is agreeable to both parties. It may well be that that is something that is not acceptable but that other things are. That is really a matter for negotiations, as you, as an ex-union official, should know. If teachers say, "Yes, we will trade off. We will do an extra hour a week teaching. We will accept that, and that will be part of the productivity gains", well and good. But, if they say no, and there are other things that are given and we come up with an agreement, well and good, too, Mr Berry.

MR KAINE: Mr Speaker, through you, I put a question to Mr Humphries, the Minister for Consumer Affairs. I will not harass and attempt to intimidate the Minister all the time he is trying to answer it, either.

MR SPEAKER: I would hope that nobody would do that, Mr Kaine.

MR KAINE: Mr Speaker, my question to the Minister is this: Can you tell us what arrangements are currently in place to protect tenants in the large town centres from any harsh or oppressive treatment that they suffer at the hands of their landlords?

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, I thank Mr Kaine for that question. I know that there have been some serious problems in relations between landlords and tenants. I regret to say that the Tuggeranong Hyperdome has been an example of a place where there have been problems. It is not the only one, unfortunately.

I am pleased to tell the Assembly that I have instructed the Director of Consumer Affairs to intervene in proceedings instituted by the Tuggeranong Hyperdome tenants to have the Tenancy Tribunal hear claims by tenants about the conduct of their landlord, Leda Commercial Properties. That action was successful, and the result will be that relations between Leda and its tenants should be drastically improved. This is because the Government facilitated access to justice for those small businesses.

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