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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 4 Hansard (29 March) . . Page.. 1146 ..

Mr Hargreaves: You wouldn't. But you said it, and you know it.

MR SMYTH: Well, you take it up with Mr Rugendyke as well because I did not. He doesn't have a memory of it either. You spin your own story, but it's just not true.

Mr Speaker, the whole process that we have here is about registration and keeping track of vehicles. What I said to both Mr Rugendyke and to Mr Hargreaves is that if they left this disallowance motion until the first week in May we could look at extending the number of vehicles that have seasonal registration. In fact the option I put to them was that members of car clubs could be considered to be on these lists. Clearly, we will not get to that. We are about to lose the whole of the reform package.

There was another comment that we do not care about low income earners or car club members. The vehicle registration system already provides for the option of three or six months registration instead of paying the full 12 months up front; 100 per cent concession on registration fees for pensioners and Veterans' Affairs gold card holders; 10 per cent concession for senior card holders; seasonal registration options for heavy vehicles, motor bikes, caravans and vehicles used in primary production; and a very low cost registration, $71.40 a year including third party insurance, as conditional registration arrangements for the owners of veteran, vintage and historic cars.

Mr Speaker, I think it is a shame that this does not go ahead. I think we will revisit this simply because the other states and territories will be pointing the finger at us if it does prove to be a loophole and does lead to the rebirthing of vehicles in the ACT.

MR HARGREAVES (11.40): Mr Speaker, I will speak to the amendment without closing the debate. There are a number of things that the minister has just said with which I take issue. He said that in 1994 principles of continuous registration were agreed. Members might remember him saying on radio, "It has taken us 50 years to get to this point."

Mr Smyth: That is correct too. National road rules started in 1949.

MR HARGREAVES: So it took 42 years to get to the point in 1994. Mr Speaker, does anyone really believe this is anything more than smoke and mirrors? "All states," he said. "We will be the only jurisdiction not to do it," he said. Do we recall that, only recently? Really! Well, on 29 March I received this email and it contains the email of the minister on 26 March, three days ago, when he replied to a person asking a question about that. I will read it:

Continuous registration is a nationally agreed road transport reform that has been implemented in most states and the Northern Territory.

I repeat, in most states. Three days ago it was most states. This morning it is all states. We have had a rush of blood to the head in three days, haven't we? The minister can wave his arms around and flap like a duck, but I am sorry, Mr Speaker, I am not moved by it. I am not moved in the slightest by it.

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