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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 04 Hansard (Thursday, 1 April 2004) . . Page.. 1514 ..

MR SMYTH (Leader of the Opposition): I seek leave to make a personal explanation under standing order 46.

MR SPEAKER: Please proceed.

MR SMYTH: Mr Speaker, on Tuesday in question time Mr Corbell stated, and it appears on page 5 of the question time Hansard:

This is an interesting policy direction from the opposition. The reason for that is that earlier this year the opposition’s spokesperson on health advocated that this sort of facility should be part of the hospital.

Mr Corbell continued:

I quote him from Hansard:

There are facilities. The key is the case load. We—

that is, the Liberal Party—

would establish a time-out facility and make sure there is a forensic unit as part of the hospital.

That is what he said only a couple of months ago, yet yesterday he came out and said that it is going to be at the prison.

Mr Speaker, I checked the Hansard and I have not been able to find this quote. I asked my office to ask the Hansard office to look for the alleged quote used by Mr Corbell and its response was, “We have searched the Hansard database and cannot find the quote that has been attributed to Mr Smyth.”

Mr Speaker, I want to let the Assembly know that these remarks are not recorded in the Assembly Hansard for this year. I did not make those remarks. My position, and that of the opposition, has been consistent over a period of time: we would aim to build a forensic centre as part of the ACT prison. Hansard did find a record of my saying on 15 May 2002:

Part of our continuing strategy to address the needs of those with mental health difficulties in the ACT was to build on this foundation. Part of that would have been answered in the construction of a prison with a forensic unit.

That was my view in 2002. That was the position all last year and it is our position now. I also want to point out that we have had very positive feedback from the community in response to our mental health policy. I also want to point out that Mr Corbell—

Mr Stanhope: Point of order, Mr Speaker: this had gone beyond a personal explanation.

MR SPEAKER: Come to the personal explanation.

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