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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 2 Hansard (27 February) . . Page.. 613 ..

MR MOORE (continuing):

the city until this issue was whipped up by a few people who, for some reason, got all offended because there was a sign next to a door going upstairs that said there was tabletop dancing or something. I still do not even know where this is, apart from the fact that it is in Civic. I am sure that some members would be happy to show me and take me on an investigative trip for our parliamentary responsibilities. I have done such investigations in brothels before today. In fact, I think I am probably one of the few members here who can say that they visited every brothel in Canberra at the time. I know Mrs Carnell has visited quite a few, and Mr Wood was on the committee with me when we visited them, although I cannot remember whether Mr Wood ever got to any of the brothels. Certainly, I visited them.

This is just a rushed piece of legislation. Let me explain one of the problems it includes in an unintended manner and one of the reasons why we should be adjourning the debate today so that it can have proper consideration. We should have proper time to look at amending it and changing it and proper time to ensure that we adopt an approach that does not allow Mr Humphries in this case, or whoever the Attorney-General is in the future, to be the moral guardian of the city. That is simply unacceptable.

Mr Osborne: Leave it up to me.

MR MOORE: I must say that it could be worse. There is always that outside chance, members - I draw this particularly to the attention of the Greens - that Mr Osborne for some reason might be Attorney-General, and in those circumstances we will look at what he might proscribe in the prescribed areas. The Bill states in relation to sexually explicit entertainment:

In this section -

"sexually explicit entertainment" means any performance or other entertainment -

(a) in the course of which a person displays genitalia; or

(b) that includes sexual intercourse within the meaning of section 92 of the Crimes Act 1900;

and includes a performance or entertainment of a prescribed kind.

That is the performance or entertainment that Mr Humphries, the moral guardian, or his successor, maybe Mr Osborne, the moral guardian, can simply prescribe, subject to disallowance; but the disallowance is not going to take effect for some time, until after the business has closed down and probably cannot reopen.

It has been drawn to my attention that in some nightclubs women gather as part of a celebration, perhaps for somebody getting married or engaged or for a twenty-first birthday, in what is commonly known as a hens' night. In some of these situations, I am given to understand, it is not uncommon as part of the entertainment for these

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