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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 1 Hansard (28 April) . . Page.. 62 ..

MS CARNELL (continuing):

put forward by the board of the TAB itself. There is also a Racecourse Development Fund contribution, Mr Speaker, that is based upon a regulation and legislation passed in this place. Obviously, Mr Speaker, there will be no dividend this year, because the TAB's own figures show that it will make an operating loss of approximately $1.5m this year.

Mr Speaker, the operating loss is based upon accepted accounting principles. It is also based upon management forecasts that have been provided by the ACTTAB board itself. It is their projected loss, Mr Speaker, not the projected loss of the ACT Government. Mr Speaker, we have applied all accounting standards, as we do to all of our approaches to government, and as I am sure does ACTTAB.

MR QUINLAN: Mr Speaker, I want to ask a supplementary question. Somewhere in that meandering answer it is quite obvious that the figures have been loaded up and - - -

MR SPEAKER: No preamble.

MR QUINLAN: I will ask the Chief Minister - - -

MR SPEAKER: Order! No preamble to supplementary questions, Mr Quinlan.

MR QUINLAN: I am sorry, Mr Speaker. I will therefore ask the Chief Minister: Will she table details of those figures in this Assembly today?

MS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, I stand by the preamble that I gave in response to the initial question, about how it is obviously impossible to deal in any confidential way with those opposite. They are very well aware that I do have figures, because I have given them to them already in the confidential meeting that we had.

Mr Corbell: So, why do you not put it on the public record?

MS CARNELL: Yes; there you are. That is exactly it. Mr Corbell comes forward and says, "Why do you not put it on the public record?". I briefed them confidentially to make sure that they had all of the information they needed, and what do they do, Mr Speaker? They ask for information to be tabled.

Mr Corbell: On a point of order, Mr Speaker: At no stage during the questioning from the Labor Opposition has any mention been made of any meeting between members of the Opposition and the Chief Minister. We are asking her to justify comments she has made on the public record, and we want her to place the information before this Assembly so that everyone in Canberra can be aware of exactly what basis the Chief Minister has for her claim.

MR SPEAKER: The Chair is in no position to judge those claims.

MS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, I am happy to table the figures upon which I based at least some of the answers that I gave. But again, Mr Speaker, those opposite know that the figures exist only because I showed them to them confidentially.

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