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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 5 Hansard (15 May) . . Page.. 1488 ..

Mr Berry: Labor's legislation botched up by you, you mean.

MRS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, Mr Berry says, "Labor's legislation botched up". The last time I looked, the amendments to Mr Berry's legislation were recommended by an Assembly committee that I was not on but that I think Mr Moore was very much part of. So, Mr Berry, you had better be careful of what you are saying if you believe in the committee system in this place. Mr Speaker, we will be doing everything in our power to reduce smoking in our community. Far be it from me to pre-empt debate later today, Mr Speaker, but what we will do is make sure that legislation that we have in place is enforceable and brings the community with us. I would like to quote from what was said by a member of the Assembly on 20 September 1994.

Mr Berry: What was his name?

MRS CARNELL: Mr Berry. His name is Berry.

Mr Humphries: Is it Wayne Berry?

MRS CARNELL: I think it is, yes. I think it is W. Berry, Mr Speaker.

Mr Berry: Read all of it then, not part of it.

MRS CARNELL: Yes, I am going to read all of it. He said this:

What we had to understand at the same time was that, in our culture, we had a couple of hundred years of tobacco consumption behind us, particularly in licensed premises ...

It also ought to be a gradual process because of the long-term impact of tobacco consumption in places like pubs and clubs. It is something that has to be worked out gradually with the industry.

Mr Speaker, need I say more?

MR BERRY: I ask a supplementary question. Chief Minister, how do you sleep at night, when you are planning to proactively encourage tobacco consumption which will promote ill health, pain, suffering and early death?

MR SPEAKER: First of all, Chief Minister, how you sleep at night is of no importance to anybody. It is an expression of opinion. I do not know what you should do with the rest of the supplementary question, frankly.

MRS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, I sleep very well at night and I can guarantee that I have never promoted tobacco consumption.

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