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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 5 Hansard (26 August) . . Page.. 1408 ..

MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Hird, settle down, please.

MR BERRY: Mr Speaker, that event was a sad day for the committee process in the ACT Assembly, and it is one that I hope will be remedied once we deal with the standing orders. I see that Mr Hird is going to support that, so that will make it easier.

Mr Speaker, the other matter which needs to be dealt with in the context of this debate is how the budget might be adjusted. If the Independents were using their power wisely they would, quite unashamedly, indicate to the Government the basis upon which their budget might be passed. They could say in relation to the funding for the Institute of the Arts, "No, we are not going to support a budget that has those cuts in it. Go back and fix it. Rearrange your priorities. Do something about the $10m black hole payment that you do not have to pay anymore because there is no longer a black hole". The Chief Minister could say, "We are not paying that". The Chief Minister could say that much of the $2m Business Development Fund that has been laying idle for two years could be put to a different purpose. There is a range of priorities which could be changed by the Government if the Independents were minded to do so. What has occurred here is a political advantage at the end of the day, I suppose, because we can go out and say, "Well, you cannot take any notice of these Independents because they say one thing and mean another".

I saw Mr Rugendyke enjoying his popularity behind the baton with the orchestra and he was having a hell of a time. He created the impression that he was right onside. Many people there would have believed that he was right onside, but they will be extremely disappointed if he fails to support this motion, and rightly so. They will be extremely disappointed if Mr Rugendyke or Mr Osborne do not support the recommendation which they warmly supported in the Estimates Committee. It regrettably will be seen as two-faced if they do not support those recommendations. That is their decision at the end of the day. If they are saying that they are unable to deal with the Government's budget because the Government has refused to change it, all they have to do is say, "Well, we are not passing it until you change your priorities". They have not got the courage to do that.

Mr Osborne: That would mean that you become a Minister.

MR BERRY: You have not got the courage to do that. Have they threatened you with that one, Paul? "If we do not get our way we will resign".

Mr Osborne: No, no; it is the thought of you being a Minister. That is what scares me.

MR BERRY: Have they threatened you with that one?

Ms Carnell: If we do not get our budget, we are out. It will not be up to us to resign if our budget does not go through.

MR BERRY: I am sure they want to keep the perks that go with office. I am sure they would be able to fix it if you really wanted them to, but the fact of the matter is that you have not properly used your influence to have them do it. Otherwise they would have done it by now. There is an option open to you now to clear yourself of suspicions that

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