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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 1 Hansard (30 April) . . Page.. 261 ..

MR BERRY (continuing):

But the circumstances that prevail at this point are that Professor Pettit has come down with a report which is a matter of fact and has to be considered. It is an appropriate course for a committee of five of this Assembly to consider that report and to decide what recommendations should go to this committee. There are some quality recommendations in that report that deserve further investigation. The Pettit committee was not a committee of the Assembly; it was a committee of the Executive. I go now to the issue of the separation of powers, Michael. Had it been a committee of the Assembly, and had we been consulted on the issue, then it might have had broader acceptance in the first place.

Mr Moore: It was a motion of this Assembly. Give the full story, Wayne.

MR BERRY: Yes, Mr Moore, I will refer to that to make sure that nobody can claim that I have been unfair. Yes, there was a motion of this Assembly in relation to the inquiry, after the event. Once the inquiry had been established and everybody had been appointed, there was a motion of this Assembly which a majority of people, except the Labor Party, endorsed. But it has to be clear on the public record that the Labor Party was left out of the loop.

I can see now, in the consideration of these extra members for this committee, that the Labor Party is again going to be restricted in its contribution to this committee. This proposal that we are putting forward for five members is to take advantage of the hand of friendship which was allegedly put out by some opposite in relation to the use of a broader base of talent from within this Assembly. If the motion is not carried, that whole proposition will have been completely debunked and will be finished.

Question put:

That the motion (Mr Berry's) be agreed to:

The Assembly voted -

AYES, 7	 	NOES, 10

Mr Berry	Ms Carnell
Mr Corbell	Mr Cornwell
Mr Hargreaves	Mr Hird
Mr Quinlan	Mr Humphries
Mr Stanhope	Mr Kaine
Ms Tucker	Mr Moore
Mr Wood		Mr Osborne
		Mr Rugendyke
		Mr Smyth
		Mr Stefaniak

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