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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 14 Hansard (10 December) . . Page.. 5164 ..

MR SMYTH: They have an opportunity to position themselves and participate in a market that is just getting smaller and smaller.

Mr Stanhope: Table their letters.

MR SMYTH: The Chief Minister says, "Table their letters."They came into my office and sat around my table because they can see people like us. They cannot get in to see people like you. The legislation sends a message. If the amendment that has been mentioned that has the word "consider"in it is moved and passed, it will send a message. Mr Quinlan says it is a piece of junk. I think sending messages sometimes can be very effective and messages should be considered.

It is interesting at this late hour that the Treasurer jumps to his feet and offers everyone a briefing. This piece of legislation has been on the paper since 27 August, almost five months ago. I have heard nothing from the Treasurer until this evening about his concerns on this and we have never been offered a briefing, to the best of my knowledge, on this issue. So suddenly at the last minute, the late hour, we get the offer of a briefing about something that might or might not be. I think it is this attitude from the Treasurer that causes me more worry because he has not even been interested enough in this bill to come and speak to people.

If we look at the amendment that Ms Dundas will be moving, it has words in it like "as far as practicable", "prefer", "avoid". If the amendment from Mrs Cross, as circulated, gets up with the word "consider"in it, what the bill does is send a message. It sends a message that there are alternatives and they should actually be considered. I think that is really at the heart of competition. Many people are very much afraid of what is happening in the world of software because the giants are taking over. They do get bigger. This is one of the ways that would ensure small local computer firms, like so many of them here in the ACT, will actually survive.

We are willing to give this bill a go, Mr Speaker. I foreshadow an amendment that I have that we will get to after the in-principle stage that says the section expires three years after the day it commences. The intention of this is that, if there is a detrimental affect, a review will be carried out before. We will look at what effect it has had, if any, and whether that effect is positive or negative. The opportunity will be there for the next Assembly to decide whether or not to consider that this should go ahead.

I think the way in which the government has behaved this evening is unfortunate-everything at the last minute, no alternative, no option. Yet the local industry that came and saw me, and which has spoken with me at many functions since, actually thinks that this will be a boon to it. Last week we got the government's white paper that says, "Let's develop an IT industry."They tell me that this is one of the ways that a local IT industry will continue.

Mr Speaker, we will be voting in favour of the bill and I would foreshadow that most of the amendments at this stage look acceptable to the Liberal Party.

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