Page 3738 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 18 October 2005
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have that fundamental right to live and to go about their business peacefully without fear of lunatics trying to blow them up, poison them, contaminate them or whatever.
We are dealing here with people who hate us, for very illogical reasons—people who want to destroy us. That is not going to go away. It is with us, unfortunately, for a long, long time. It is essential that we take precautions that protect our community and that will, hopefully, save innocent law-abiding Australian citizens from being hurt, from being maimed and from being killed.
It is unfortunate perhaps that laws like this are needed, but needed they are. It is also quite true that there is a sunset clause in the legislation; there are protections in place. The laws will be monitored, because we are a free country and we take pride in our freedoms. You people are completely missing the point.
MR SPEAKER: Order! The member’s time has expired.
MR SMYTH (Brindabella—Leader of the Opposition) (12.17), in reply: We have heard from Mr Hargreaves that this legislation is a joke, but this is the legislation the Chief Minister agreed to. This is the legislation that the Chief Minister, the premiers and the other chief minister agreed to. Mr Bracks said yesterday, “I am pleased with the Prime Minister’s comments where he said the legislation will have no more and no less than what was agreed at COAG.” That is exactly what we would expect. This is what was agreed to at COAG.
I am intrigued that Mr Hargreaves would go on and say that Jon Stanhope is the only person with any spine in this country. I am sure somebody will pass that on to Premier Beattie, Premier Bracks, Premier Iemma, Premier Gallop, Premier Rann, Premier Lennon and Chief Minister Martin of the Northern Territory. Possibly they might even pass it on to Mr Beazley, Ms Gillard and Mr Rudd. Mr Hargreaves might even look around and talk about it with the rest of his cabinet colleagues, who obviously have no spine and do not stand for anything; they stand for nothing. It is pleasing to know that Jon Stanhope is the only person with any spine in this country.
I call on Mr Hargreaves to tell us what his definition of “spine” is, because when the opportunity came, when the time was there for Jon Stanhope to stand up, he agreed. He did not stand up; he did not say it was wrong. He agreed with all the other premiers and chief ministers that this legislation should go ahead, and that is what we are here about today. His opportunity to be brave—to have a spine, not to be gutless, not to be a jellyback—was in COAG. He came away from COAG convinced; it was only later on that he found the guts to make that legislation available, despite what is stamped on the top of it: “draft-in-confidence”. This legislation should have been treated appropriately, and that is why we are here today: the lack of appropriate treatment of the legislation.
If the Chief Minister did not like this legislation, he should have said so on the day; but he did not. He went up there like the lion; he came home like the lamb. It was only later on that he found his courage to object to what was being done, and late on a Friday afternoon, instead of going out and making public what he was going to do, he dropped it on the Chief Minister’s web site and put it out on the World Wide Web. Well, that is not courage—and Mr Hargreaves needs to look at his definition of courage.
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