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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 7 Hansard (27 June) . . Page.. 2069 ..

MR QUINLAN (continuing):

government could grind to a screaming halt for the want of a provision or two or that there could be litigation flowing from this process, which means, unfortunately, that we really need to give the government some sort of insurance policy which allows it to make changes over a limited period with some, if you like, off-line or out-of-Assembly approval process.

I foreshadow that I will be moving an amendment in the detail stage to make sure that we have majority acceptance of any change that is made and that that is done in writing. Otherwise, we are happy - we are not happy, but we grudgingly support the bill.

Mr Smyth: Acceptingly.

MR QUINLAN: "Acceptingly" is a good word from the young man.

MR STANHOPE (Leader of the Opposition) (8.51): This bill, as my colleague has indicated, demonstrates the complexity of the arrangements that have been foisted on the nation by the Liberal Party in its many emanations and by its friends the Democrats through the new tax system. What should be a simple matter of calculating and setting government fees and charges has required this significant effort and the much churning and changing of approaches within the Assembly. In addition, there is this last-minute rush and pressure to get it all done over the next couple of days.

The Prime Minister and the federal Treasurer have kept reminding the nation that we have had ample time to prepare for the GST; yet, as I just indicated, three or four days away from its commencement we are being asked to pass legislation because, in the words of the ACT Treasurer, there is a need for an act to cover the introduction of the GST and, as Mr Humphries has put it, "any unforeseen circumstances that may arise with its implementation in the territory". I emphasise the words "unforeseen circumstances that may arise with its implementation", and wonder what the range, the extent and the breadth of those unforeseen circumstances will be for people in Canberra, particularly some of the pensioners who have approached me about their circumstances. I am not sure that they are the unforeseen circumstances that the Liberal Party here has any concern for.

The Treasurer also says that the act will operate from 1 July 2000 for a period of no longer than four months or six sitting days, though I do note that the legislation extends until this time next year. The act is to expire on 30 June 2001, just a tad longer than the four months or six sitting days that the Treasurer has spoken about.

We were asked to pass an amendment to the Interpretation Act that threatened to usurp the Assembly's role in determining what taxes should be imposed. We are now asked to consider this bill and the amendments proposed by the Attorney. This bill, as the Attorney says in his letter of 27 June, is constrained in its operation. It is narrower in scope than the amendments to the Interpretation Act, but still opens the door for persons other than this Assembly to determine not just what taxes should be imposed but what legislation should be amended.

The scrutiny of bills committee has pointed that this bill, by subclause 5 (1), gives a wide power to modify by regulation, in the words of the scrutiny of bills committee, "almost the whole body of existing and possible future legislation of the territory". The words of

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