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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 5 Hansard (13 May) . . Page.. 1283 ..

MRS CARNELL (continuing):

We did not sign until probably 8 or 9 May, Mr Speaker. That means we were a month late. We were not exactly hasty. If this letter was written, as it obviously was, on 6 May, it was written before we signed that particular part of the contract. It was signed a couple of days after we told Mr Berry that we were going to sign imminently, and we did sign imminently, Mr Speaker, as we said we would, a month late, a month after I think we should have signed. But we are still negotiating. There are lots of issues that still need to be sorted out, and that process is continuing.

MR BERRY: I have a supplementary question, Mr Speaker. So, Chief Minister, when you said that you were negotiating on the 6th, it was true until the 8th. I put it to you that it is quite true that you have deliberately misled the community with that letter. I put it to you, Chief Minister, that you have deliberately misled this Assembly in your portrayal of the way this contract was signed. This contract was signed in a hasty way to avoid scrutiny by this Assembly. You have denied that, but I think the evidence is on the table, and I think it is about time that you accepted that you have misled the community.

MR SPEAKER: Is that a question or a statement, Mr Berry?

MR BERRY: - - - misled the community and misled the Assembly, most importantly, in your portrayal of the way this contract was signed. It was signed hastily and dishonestly.

Mrs Carnell: Mr Speaker, if Mr Berry is making any imputations that I have misled the Assembly, I would like him to withdraw those before I answer the supplementary question.

MR BERRY: I will repeat what I said. Is it not true that you have deliberately misled the community and this Assembly in your portrayal of the way the contract was signed?

MR SPEAKER: The answer to that is very simple.

MRS CARNELL: The answer is no, Mr Speaker. In that letter that went out we were in no way suggesting to the community that we had not made a decision on the hospital.

Mr Berry: You said you were negotiating.

MRS CARNELL: We made a - - -

Mr Berry: Poke out your tongue. It has a big black strip down the middle. Look at your nose.

MR SPEAKER: Order!

MRS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, poor old Mr Berry just cannot handle the situation where we will have a new private hospital, $20m worth of investment, 230 construction jobs, 200 jobs in the actual operation of the hospital, and pressure taken off our public hospital capacity to have more patient throughput in the public hospital system.

Mr Berry: I would consider apologising for misleading the Assembly, if I were you.

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