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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 3 Hansard (9 March) . . Page.. 816 ..

MR BERRY: Well, I thought - - -

MR TEMPORARY DEPUTY SPEAKER: Mr Berry, I would strongly urge you to address the chair - standing order 42. Thank you, Mr Berry.

MR BERRY: Thank you. (Extension of time granted) Mr Rugendyke seems to complain that the argument is getting too hard. This morning he said, "I don't think they've really argued too hard". I am going to argue a little bit hard today, and you are going to have to listen to it. You should make your decision on the basis of the discussion and debate in this place as well as your research - and not rely on people coming round to have a cup of tea and kiss you on the cheek.

You know about the fingerprints issue and what the Act presumes. Do you know about section 17 of the Act, Mr Rugendyke? Section 17 of the Territory Owned Corporations Act states:

1. the voting shareholders of a Territory owned corporation request it or a subsidiary to perform, cease to perform or refrain from performing an activity or to perform an activity in a manner that is different from the manner in which the directors intend to perform the activity; and
2. the directors of the company advise the voting shareholders that compliance with their request would not be in the best commercial interest of the company;

1. The company shall comply with a lawful direction.
2. The directors of a company are not to be taken to be in breach of any duty under a law or the memorandum or articles of association of the company by reason only of their compliance with a lawful direction.

If the company disagrees with the voting shareholders, the matter becomes public. But if the company agrees with the voting shareholders in respect of the future of ACTEW, we will never see it. So you will never know whether they have got their fingerprints on it or not. You will never know.

There are two aspects where you clearly know that they have their fingerprints on it; in respect of the approval that was given to take it this far and the future approval that will be given by the Chief Minister. If you think she is going to be making that in a vacuum you are kidding yourself. She has got to have her fingerprints all over it. Do not try to kid the community. That is completely out of step with your obligations as an elected member. Fancy saying that you think she will not have her fingerprints all over it. What a joke!

Mr Rugendyke has this final agreement that the assets of ACTEW would revert to it in the event of the partnership being dissolved. For nothing? Have you got it for nothing or for how much? Do you know how much? No, you do not know how much. The Treasurer-without-numbers does not know how much either. You are basing this on no numbers. Your research has run into a dead end and you just think it will be a good idea.

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