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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 1 Hansard (15 February) . . Page.. 253 ..

MR KAINE (continuing):

Members will recall that at the time of the tragedy the government considered it imperative that an inquiry separate from the coroner's inquest should be conducted. Major General Smethurst was appointed to carry out this separate inquiry. In the search for the truth, no stone was to be left unturned. With the blowtorch on their belly, money was to be no object for the government. And initially, at least, the government saw no impediment to the two investigatory processes being conducted simultaneously.

Regrettably, however, the inquiry, which might have resolved issues now still outstanding, went into recess when the Chief Coroner identified some possible difficulties which might arise from conducting two parallel inquiries.

Mr Speaker, twice this week I have raised with the Chief Minister the question of reactivating the Smethurst inquiry to deal with matters of serious public concern arising from the bungled hospital implosion that will not now, apparently, be addressed following the abandonment of criminal proceeding arising out of the coroner's inquest.

The Chief Minister's response was both predictable and negative. Firstly, he claimed, we do not have the money. Secondly, we got a typically flippant response from the Chief Minister-something about whether Elvis Presley was dead or not. But the money argument will not wash. There was plenty of money available in 1997 when the blowtorch was on the belly and that money has not been spent because the inquiry was terminated. But that, of course, was when the government was squirming in the glare of intensely negative publicity. So presumably the money that the government originally allocated is still available and can be used.

But disregarding that, we have seen during the last 24 hours that the government apparently has many millions of dollars available to be sprinkled around where they think some electoral advantage might be gleaned in an election year. I notice that the government has no difficulty in finding money for initiatives seen to be electorally attractive-for example undefined "innovations"; "social capital", which still has not been defined; and so-called "compacts" with the community. There is no shortage of money for what the government wants to do.

The other argument from the Chief Minister, his flippant response, is both insensitive and unacceptable. To compare the personal ramifications of the implosion for the Bender family with those who might have or had some distant attachment to Elvis Presley is, quite frankly, appalling. Indeed, his facetious remarks, while unfortunately typical of his lack of judgement, are quite distasteful.

Mr Speaker, there is clear justification for further examination of the unresolved issues flowing from the tragic events of that Sunday afternoon in July 1997. The issues of criminal liability were dealt with by the coroner but have now been disposed of, albeit unsatisfactorily for many Canberrans. But the administrative and managerial shortcomings that contributed to this tragedy have not been dealt with. Widespread ignorance, incompetence and mismanagement led to a tragic death and to major trauma for many people. Yet all of those individuals involved who exhibited and practised ignorance, incompetence and lack of management skills, seem to stand to escape unscathed after all of this.

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