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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 8 Hansard (9 August) . . Page.. 2724 ..

Motion of (continuing):

Mr Speaker, I heard the word "condescending". Mrs Burke heard the word "bloody". What was the last word used? Mr Speaker, it was not "fool" because Mr Quinlan himself denied yesterday that he had used that word. In fact, it is interesting to note that, having denied yesterday that he had said that, today he said in the chamber that he had withdrawn the description "a bloody fool" in respect of me.

Mr Quinlan: I thought I had but-

MR HUMPHRIES: That is not what the Hansard shows, Mr Speaker.

Mr Quinlan: I got chopped off by the Speaker.

MR HUMPHRIES: Oh, you were chopped off?

Mr Quinlan: Have a look at page 60.

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Quinlan apparently is now claiming that he has been misreported. He claims constantly that he is misrepresented in this place by me. Now he claims he has been misrepresented or misreported by Hansard, apparently. It seems that Mr Quinlan is a man much misrepresented in this place-a man more sinned against than sinning, you might say.

Mr Speaker, the remark that Mr Quinlan made is recorded in the Hansard as "Condescending, bloody woman". It is a remark which has been verified by the Hansard office, it is a remark which I believe Mr Quinlan made, it is a remark which must have been directed at someone on this side of the chamber. I will come to Mr Stanhope's role in this in a moment, but the remark was obviously directed at someone on this side of the chamber.

If Mr Quinlan wants to rise in this place and seriously maintain he was addressing Mr Hargreaves or Mr Berry or Mr Stanhope, then that is another matter.

Mr Berry: Or you.

MR HUMPHRIES: If it was addressed to me, then why, when asked yesterday to withdraw a remark made about me, did he deny making that remark? Mr Speaker, he made a remark yesterday which he denied disingenuously having made about me. The Hansard shows he made it about Mrs Burke-clearly he had made it about Mrs Burke.

Mr Speaker, there was tension between Mrs Burke and Mr Quinlan. There were exchanges between the two of them during the day and subsequently. Mr Quinlan, the same page of Hansard records an exchange between you and Mrs Burke.

Mr Hargreaves: She started it.

Mr Quinlan: She started it.

MR HUMPHRIES: She started it, Mr Speaker; Mrs Burke started it. So it is okay to call people names if they start it. Well, that is fine, Mr Speaker.

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