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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 5 Hansard (11 May) . . Page.. 1458 ..
MR CORBELL: My question is to the Minister for Urban Services. Minister, your department has issued a local area planning advisory committee protocol that contains the following provision:
Any proposed media comment in the role of LAPAC corporately or individually shall be limited to the scope of the LAPAC. Preliminary advice of proposed comment shall be provided to the Minister's representative (normally the Media Adviser or PALM's Media Adviser).
Will the minister explain to the Assembly why he wants to censor members of the LAPACs, via this provision, before they make comments to the media? What is the basis of this government's phobia and your phobia with freedom of speech by members of the LAPACs?
MR SPEAKER: There are certain imputations in that, but I think that you can deal with the matter.
MR SMYTH: Mr Speaker, you could almost say that that question is out of order in that it has imputations and it is making assumptions that are not allowed in questions. But the reality is-and this is the thing that Mr Corbell forgets-that LAPACs were established to advise the minister, and when somebody speaks as an adviser to the minister it is more than appropriate that they speak to the minister and tell him or her what they are about to comment on.
Mr Stanhope: Why?
MR SMYTH: It is because they are speaking as the minister's adviser. They are my advisers. Local area planning advisory committees were set up to assist the minister. If somebody wants to go out and speak on behalf of a LAPAC in an official position, as an adviser to the minister, it is more than appropriate that they confine their remarks to those things that LAPACs are responsible for and they do so with the approval of the minister. Mr Corbell, who is very good at selective quoting, might read the next line to the Assembly to clarify what this is all about.
Mr Corbell: Censorship!
MR SPEAKER: I call Mr Corbell for a supplementary question.
MR CORBELL: The minister refers to the next line. The next line, of course, just says what he said. Mr Speaker, he has failed to answer the question, which is: why does he believe that LAPACs should do so? Will the minister immediately advise his department-that is, PALM-to withdraw this provision from the protocol, considering that almost every LAPAC has rejected it?
MR SMYTH
: I would be delighted to know how Mr Corbell knows that, given that the consultation process has not finished. Unlike the Labor Party, we actually get out there and talk to people. We get out there and consult. That is why, Mr Corbell, it is in draft form. You should tell people why you do not quote entire documents or put quotes in the
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