Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 5 Hansard (6 May) . . Page.. 1556 ..

MR BERRY (continuing):

Let us go to the initial claims about the budget in respect of its transparency. It is described as a full-monty budget. I suppose that meant no hats. We discovered, as I said last evening, that it is really a three-card-monty budget. In three-card monty you will always find some pickpockets and dishonest people around, and that is the style of this budget. We found an example of that in Mr Moore's own budget papers. Mr Moore has been out defending himself on that and has a different position on it, but the papers show that between Canberra Hospital and ACT Community Care 353 jobs are to go. Mr Moore will say that half of them or more are going to be transferred from Canberra Hospital to ACT Community Care.

Mr Moore: I did say it. I told them on the radio. You got it wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong.

MR BERRY: No, I got it right. Your budget papers are wrong. You put out budget papers which were dishonest and misleading. You deliberately tabled in this place budget papers which were dishonest and misleading, because they make it clear that 353 jobs are going.

Mr Moore: Jon's office was able to work it out.

MR BERRY: Look at the papers yourself. Just get out your own budget papers and they will demonstrate that to you. I will go through the numbers if you do not understand them, Mr Moore.

Mr Moore: I do understand them.

MR BERRY: FTEs in 1998-99, 2,452, and in 1999-2000 - this is for the Canberra Hospital - 2,105. These are from your budget papers. The difference is minus 347.

Mr Moore: Jon, stop him. This is your area. He is blowing it badly.

Mr Corbell: I take a point of order, Mr Speaker. I am loath to interrupt my colleague Mr Berry, but Mr Moore just cannot help himself. He persistently and wilfully interjects whenever Mr Berry is on his feet and he should by now have a level of self-discipline that stops him from doing that. I would ask you to call him to order.

Mr Moore: He is deliberately baiting me, Mr Speaker.

MR SPEAKER: Mr Corbell, I uphold your point of order. Deliberate provocation is not unknown from either side of this house. However, I am conscious that it is almost 10 to 10 and many of us are getting past our bedtimes.

MR BERRY: I am not. I have got plenty left in me.

MR SPEAKER: Did I suggest an answer?

MR BERRY: No, Mr Speaker.

MR SPEAKER: I was simply cautioning some members.

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .