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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 13 Hansard (7 December) . . Page.. 3865 ..

MR OSBORNE (4.16): I have sought advice from the senior statesman on our committee, Mr Kaine, and I think that both his understanding of this issue and mine are as one. We feel that this issue should be looked at further down the track. I certainly do not feel that I am in a position to support what Mr Hargreaves is proposing at this stage. We threw it back to the Government. They have said no. I think the committee's attitude was that we would monitor it and have a look at it further down the track.

I do remember saying that there was probably a reason for the levy. Mr Humphries has answered some of the questions Mr Kaine and I had in relation to the levy. It is something that perhaps the committee can look at in the new year.

MS TUCKER (4.17): I want to comment on Mr Osborne's comments. The committee said:

Then there is a recommendation which says:

I am confused about what we are meant to understand from this committee report. Now I am hearing Mr Osborne say that he and Mr Kaine agree that they did not actually mean that; they just meant that maybe it is something that should be looked at. I have to accept that, but if you read this recommendation and what precedes it, you can only assume that the committee does not want it. The committee said:

Now we are hearing that it is different. I am listening to the arguments, but there are not a lot of arguments either.

MR KAINE (4.18) Mr Speaker, we are bogging down in a quagmire here. I have already spoken to this Bill. I addressed this very question of whether or not at this stage we should be seeking to have separate legislation for the Ambulance Service. I have already explained that, while we made that recommendation, the Government has not picked up that recommendation and the legislation, which does not provide for separate Ambulance Service legislation, is what we are considering today.

Unless somebody is going to move that we table right now another Bill to provide for the administration of ambulance services, I suggest that we can continue arguing for the rest of the week and it is not going to get us anywhere. The fact is that the Government has a Bill. They set aside our recommendation. That is their prerogative. I do not agree

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