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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 5 Hansard (26 August) . . Page.. 1379 ..

Mr Berry: As prepared in his ministerial office.

MR CORBELL: Which he has had prepared, as my colleague Mr Berry points out quite correctly, in his ministerial office by staff employed to support him as a Minister. That is the very clear difference. Mr Speaker, private members business is for non-Executive members in this place. Someone in this chamber once said, "Mr Moore cannot have it both ways. He cannot be inside the tent and outside the tent". It seems to me that that is exactly what he is trying to do in putting forward this legislative program.

If he wants to put forward this legislative program, he first of all must guarantee us that resources devoted to him as a Minister are not being used to prepare a private members program. Secondly, the Government is going to have to work out how it allocates its time in this place to allow him as a Minister, as an Executive member, to put forward these Bills. We do not think it is appropriate that private members business be devoted to this activity. Perhaps, Mr Moore, we are going to need to examine some other process in this place for dealing with that. This side of the house does not accept that private members business is the time for this program. If the Government does not accept that it is Executive business time when we should deal with this program, then there needs to be some other avenue found. I would be very happy to have that discussion. We do not accept that private members business is the time to undertake this program.

Mr Speaker, what is happening over there is not some new radical experiment. It is not some new radical experiment when Mr Moore is in with the Liberal Party. It is called a coalition. It happens all the time. We have seen again and again since this Assembly was elected Mr Moore bound as a coalition partner with the Liberal Party in voting on a whole range of issues, even voting on issues that before - - -

Mr Moore: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. Mr Corbell knows very well that he is misleading the Assembly. I have never been bound with the Liberal Party. I have been bound with Cabinet. He knows very well that he is misleading the Assembly, and it is a matter for which he ought to be censured if he continues.

MR CORBELL: If Mr Moore takes offence at that, then obviously I have hit a raw nerve and I am quite happy to correct my comments and say that he is bound by the Cabinet as a coalition partner in any parliament is bound. Mr Speaker, when it comes down to it, this side of the house does have concerns about how this program is put together, and we will be happy to have a discussion with Mr Moore and the Government about what time should be made available, but private members business is not the time for it.

MR KAINE: Mr Speaker, I seek leave to make a short comment on this matter.

Leave granted.

MR KAINE: Mr Speaker, in my 10 years in this place I thought I had seen everything and heard everything. We have had people being bitten by monkeys and we have had all sorts of strange events, but this is the most bizarre proposition that I have ever seen put forward in this place. I suppose that tomorrow we will get four more private members programs for the rest of the year from the other four members of the Government.

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