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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 01 Hansard (Thursday, 12 February 2004) . . Page.. 288 ..

Debate (on motion by Mrs Dunne) adjourned to a later hour.

Suspension of standing and temporary orders

MR QUINLAN (Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development, Business and Tourism, and Minister for Sport, Racing and Gaming) (12.00): Mr Speaker, I seek leave to move a motion concerning a reference to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. The motion has been circulated.

Leave not granted.

MR QUINLAN: I move:

That so much of the standing and temporary orders be suspended as would prevent him moving a motion concerning a reference to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts.

MS DUNDAS (12.00): Mr Speaker, the reason why I oppose leave being given to the Treasurer to suspend standing orders is that no notice at all has been given of this motion. It was not on the notice paper, it was not on the blue. Members of the Assembly have not been told in great detail what the Treasurer is trying to achieve by moving a substantive motion. However, I do not want to debate that issue.

I am concerned about the process and that is why I do not think leave should just be granted. We need to have a proper debate about why the Treasurer is seeking to suspend standing orders.

MRS DUNNE (12.01): Mr Speaker, I am, in principle, in agreement with suspending the standing orders. I know that the Treasurer and his office have been in consultation with the opposition, and for that I am grateful. But I do take the point that Ms Dundas has raised that perhaps it would be useful to consult more widely.

A way out of this might be to adjourn consideration of the substantive motion until a later hour this day. This would give the Treasurer the opportunity to consult with the other members of the Assembly who have not hitherto been consulted. I and the opposition would like to see the matters which are the subject of the substantive motion referred to a committee. However, we do not have to do it at three minutes past 12. We could do it at half past four.

MR QUINLAN (Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development, Business and Tourism, and Minister for Sport, Racing and Gaming) (12.02), in reply: Let me first apologise if there has been any offence. I think the motion is fairly straightforward; this is a fairly simple issue.

I have to make these comments: the consultation between my office and the office of Ms Dundas on matters relating to financial management bills in particular or the various suites of accountability legislation has been highly unsatisfactory. We have often sought opinion from Ms Dundas’s office on legislation or on difficulties that we see for the

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