Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 8 Hansard (27 August) . . Page.. 2570 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

Mr Wood raised the issue of the media and how they focus on conflict. I agree that that is an issue; but that is not a reason to continue to work in only that way.

Mr Wood: We do not work in only that way.

MS TUCKER: Of course, we do not work in only that way; but you were seeming to say that we need to address this issue through the media. I am acknowledging that that is an issue for politicians; but it is certainly not a reason just to say that this particular motion is not worth supporting. Mr Wood also said that, from his experience, the Assembly does work. What is wrong with asking how it could work better? That is what I am doing here today, and that is what Mr Moore and Mr Osborne are asking, and Mrs Carnell has also been quite willing to ask that same question. Of course it works; but how can we make it work better?

The first thing Mr Berry picked up on was the personality issues in the early days in this place and the fights that were going on. He said that I should read Hansard. I have read Hansard. The issues in the debate here are not about who those individual parties were or what the community said at that time; the issues are that the standing orders were changed. Those who wrote the self-government Act or who put together the standing orders for this place did not consider that there should be a Leader of the Opposition. It was that particular group of individuals, representing Labor and Liberal, on that day here in 1989 who decided that they knew better. They figured that that was the way this parliament should work.

"A steady thing on the other side" is what Mr Berry said. The steady thing element is what worries the community. The steady thing element is what is destroying Victoria right now - a majority government that has unfettered power to do what it likes. The Labor Party is very upset about that steady thing existing in Victoria right now, because what is happening is absolutely offensive. There is great value, in the minds of the community, in the steady thing not having total power.

There is another issue. A number of Labor members have raised this issue, and Ms McRae did so particularly colourfully. It was suggested that we wanted to dance around like sweet things, or something like that.

Ms McRae: You do, for heaven's sake. Every time you have conflicts you wimp.

MS TUCKER: Ms McRae interjects to say that we do. You did not listen to my speech. I acknowledged the value of conflict in the Westminster system. I was particularly careful to raise that in my speech, because I knew that you would say that. I have heard you say it before. I want to make it quite clear that I welcome the role of conflict, scrutiny and debate. What I am saying is that we can also look at other ways of expanding how we work in this place. Yes, I did move a no-confidence motion in Mrs Carnell. That was the thing I felt was appropriate at that time. However, maybe that would not have been necessary if we had had processes in this place whereby there was more consultation and working together on the issues about which I was so concerned and which led to my actually moving that no-confidence motion.

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .