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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 12 Hansard (12 November) . . Page.. 3459 ..

MR QUINLAN (continuing):

That implies that we made a promise-and yet I stood in this place and said that the intention of this government is to make a surplus over the economic cycle. I said that repeatedly.

Mr Smyth: Where, and when?

MR SPEAKER: Members of the opposition, please come to order!

MR QUINLAN: This sort of statement, this sort of misinformation, is typical of an opposition that is bereft of an original thought-hopeless. "I cannot prove this promise was actually broken, but I will put it out anyway. I will say it anyway."

Here is another one. "Low-risk prisoners will go to the temporary remand facility at Symonston."That is not an election promise, but do not worry about that-stretch the truth.

"In the budget estimates, there was an admission that high-risk prisoners would end up Symonston."That is not true, Mr Humphries, and you know it.

Mr Humphries: You said it.

MR QUINLAN: Could you say that louder-so it is in Hansard?

MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Quinlan, please resume your seat for a minute. Members of the opposition, please maintain order in the place. Otherwise, you put me in a position where it is "out the front door". I do not want to be forced into that position.

Mr Humphries: If you want to go outside the front door feel free, Mr Speaker.

MR SPEAKER: Mr Humphries, you will be the first!

MR QUINLAN: Thank you, Mr Speaker. What I did say was that the prisoners who go there will, because of the system, be described as maximum security-right? No, that is not good enough-because what you have to do is distort the truth. As I said, this is a pathetic scratch-around. For 12 months you guys have been over there, and this is the best you can do. It is appalling.

"Labor will cap rates to the actual CPI movement."I made it clear that it would be the CPI movement of the immediate past year. But no-we have to imply in this that I said that somehow it was the future CPI. "This is a dishonest document. This is a broken promise."

This is a good one-I had better get on with it. "Ted Quinlan wanted to remove superannuation returns from the financial accounts and, because of accounting standards, because the Auditor-General has ruled against it, he cannot-it is a broken promise."That is fairly desperate stuff, Mr Humphries. I repeat that using these tags and trying to say the government is lazy and do-nothing is the first weapon of choice of an ineffectual, inadequate opposition without a positive idea to contribute, and without a criticism of any genuine substance. That is you. Why do you not start the process of thinking? You might get to like it!

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