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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 1 Hansard (2 February) . . Page.. 26 ..

MR STANHOPE (continuing):

... that the committee meet on 30 January at 11.30 am with a view to a final review of the report, including consideration of Mr Hird's dissent, should the committee find itself able to adopt any amendments to the report which might be sought by Mr Hird.

The secretary was directed to advise Mr Hird of the extended deadline. There we have detailed minutes setting out in a considered way the processes of the committee; minutes accepted by the other three members of the committee; minutes drafted by the secretary to the committee, a member of the staff of this place. I thought that perhaps the minutes did not reflect the views of Mr Hird, that when the motion was moved at the next meeting to accept those minutes we would see Mr Hird's objection to that history of the nature of the discussion in the penultimate meeting at which this process was set out. And what do we find in that ultimate set of minutes? We find these words in item 3:

Confirmation of minutes

On the motion of Mr Hird the minutes of meeting no 9 were confirmed

Mr Wood: Say that again.

MR STANHOPE: On the motion of Mr Hird, the minutes of meeting No. 9 - the minutes that I just dealt with at length - were confirmed. What a joke!

MS TUCKER: Mr Speaker, I wish to make a personal explanation under standing order 46.

MR SPEAKER: Proceed.

MS TUCKER: Thank you. I note that Mr Hird is going to write to you regarding the conduct of this committee. I would like to put on the record right now that I think that Mr Hird has been quite ridiculous in what he has just said. He did not raise any concerns during the meetings. As a member of the committee, I object to hearing the chair of our committee accused of intimidation. As a member of the committee, I assume that I am being accused of supporting that intimidation. I heard Mr Hird apologise because he had shouted at me and other members. This has happened before, but we are grown-up people and we do not spit the dummy in the Assembly and say that we have been disenfranchised because someone has shouted at us. It was Mr Hird who actually apologised in the committee for his behaviour. Of course there is spirited debate. I am very concerned that, as a member of the committee, I am once again being impugned by these accusations.

Mr Moore: We are talking about standing order 248.

MS TUCKER: Mr Moore knows absolutely nothing about what has gone on, except the allegations which we are now hearing from Mr Hird but which were never expressed to the committee. In fact, they are trying to bring the committee system into disrepute to serve their own political gains.

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