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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 1 Hansard (20 February) . . Page.. 285 ..

MR OSBORNE (continuing):

I think the big mistake is not the sacking of Ms Rees but the actual appointment of her to the board in the first place. That is where you made the mistake, Mrs Carnell. I honestly think that is where you made the mistake. She said some terrible things about people here, but it is not the first time. She made comments prior to your appointing her to the board.

Mrs Carnell: We accept that we made a mistake.

MR OSBORNE: I am glad you accept that. She has said some terrible things about people here, and I am not going to get involved in planning because I do not want her to start on me. Quite frankly, Mr Speaker, the issue for me is not about consultation; it is about the Government realising they had made a mistake and trying to fix it. Unfortunately, I cannot accept that. They have to live with that decision. We all make decisions that come back to haunt us afterwards. I think what has happened here is that the Government have made one in regard to this appointment. Mr Speaker, I still would like to add that I think what has happened this afternoon was a complete waste of time, and I am disappointed that we have spent hours of valuable Assembly time on it. We have gone way past the normal sitting hour on a nothing issue. I think we should have made it very clear very quickly.

As I said, I will be supporting the reinstatement of Jacqui Rees, not because I necessarily think she will be good or bad but because I think the issue is that they appointed her knowing - and I mean this in the nicest possible way - what she was like; and they are going to have to live with it, I am afraid. Mr Speaker, that is the one issue to me; the rest of it, I think, is just political point-scoring. I do not think we need it. On the issue of Jacqui Rees, I think you need to admit you made two mistakes. The second one was sacking her, but the first and biggest one was that you appointed her. I think we have to make you live with it. As I said, it is not a matter of someone coming onto the board lately and all of a sudden becoming very vocal; she has been that through the whole history of her public life. I think you are going to have to wear it. Perhaps by putting her on the board you were hoping she might shut up, for want of a better phrase; but, unfortunately, it did not work, and you are going to have to live with it.

MR HUMPHRIES (Attorney-General) (6.10): Mr Speaker, I will be very brief, because I think we all want to go on to other things.

Mr Moore: He said he would be very brief before, and he went for 15 minutes.

MR HUMPHRIES: When I say that I will be brief, I will be brief. I just want to indicate to the Assembly that, in a funny kind of way, I almost look forward to the passing of Mr Moore's amendment because I sometimes think in terms of being in opposition and I still think about the opportunities that the greater power that devolves to the Assembly gives to those who are not in government. A few years ago the Assembly passed legislation of Mr Moore's to provide that governments, for the first time, had to consult extensively on appointments to government bodies and boards. For the first time, members were actually able to see in many cases what was going on with the appointments to those boards.

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