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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 10 Hansard (5 September) . . Page.. 3185 ..

MR MOORE (continuing):

The Greens have come into this Assembly again and again saying to us, "Please give us appropriate time to consider legislation". Again and again the rest of us have gone along with them and said, "Yes, that is what we will do, because it is appropriate that we consider legislation carefully. It is appropriate that legislation go through the Scrutiny of Bills Committee". I have not seen a Scrutiny of Bills Committee report on this piece of legislation. I think I am correct in saying that as yet it has not been done.

Ms Follett: Yes, it has. It has not been tabled.

MR MOORE: It has been done but not tabled. Mr Speaker, I would appeal to my Green colleagues - the Government is obviously set in their way of doing this - to recall the number of times they have asked me to support them in asking for time to consider Bills. We need time to look at this Bill and to consider the precedent and ramifications of a commencement clause in this particular form. The normal commencement provision is that the Act commences when it is gazetted or that, if it has not commenced in six months, it is considered to have commenced. That is a very long time in the future. This Bill sets an entirely new precedent which none of us have discussed.

To suspend standing orders now, a few hours after we got this piece of legislation, is entirely inappropriate, especially when it actually sets a new precedent. Mr Humphries, who I know has always been concerned about precedent, ought to reconsider whether this is an appropriate thing to do this afternoon. Rather than push it through, it would be better to let Coles form their club for a couple of weeks.

MR SPEAKER: The member's time has expired.

MR BERRY (4.34): Mr Speaker, I move:

That the debate be adjourned.

We have not seen the committee report in relation to this Bill.

Question put:

That the debate be adjourned.

The Assembly voted -

AYES, 8	 	NOES, 9

Mr Berry	Mrs Carnell
Ms Follett	Mr Cornwell
Ms McRae	Mr De Domenico
Mr Moore	Mr Hird
Mr Osborne	Ms Horodny
Ms Reilly	Mr Humphries
Mr Whitecross	Mr Kaine
Mr Wood		Mr Stefaniak
		Ms Tucker

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