Page 4602 - Week 14 - Thursday, 24 November 2005
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droves and vote against the Liberals to degrees and levels that they have never voted against them before, it raises an interesting issue in relation to the capacity of governments to determine the degree of their ambit. I think it is no more evident in relation to the dragway than any other issue. The Liberals were out there campaigning like mad. They had a great big bus—do you remember—which Bill Stefaniak rode around in.
MR STEFANIAK: Mr Speaker, I wish to raise a point of order. He is quite clearly breaching standing order 118 (b) in debating the subject. And he certainly should confine himself to the subject matter of the question. So he is probably doing both.
MR SPEAKER: You mentioned the subject in your question. Mr Stefaniak, these questions are politically loaded, as always. I think ministers are entitled to use an element of politics when they respond to questions. The subject matter was the dragway.
MR STEFANIAK: The subject matter was the dragway but, under 118 (b), he cannot debate that.
MR SPEAKER: Well—
MR STEFANIAK: If you could just hear me on that, the question was: what is the status of the consultation process—and when will construction commence on a dragway in the ACT? It is pretty simple. He is going off on a tangent debating—
MR SPEAKER: Fair dinkum, Mr Stefaniak. Read out the whole question—come on.
MR STEFANIAK: I will read the whole question again, if you like. I refer you to the question. The preamble is: one of your government’s election commitments in 2004 was that you would build a dragway within 18 months. More than 12 months has elapsed since the election.
MR SPEAKER: Ministers are entitled to make some mention of the government’s commitments and any other corresponding commitments people might make. As long as the minister sticks to the subject matter of the question, which is the dragway, and does it within five minutes, I think he is responding appropriately.
MR STANHOPE: Thank you, Mr Speaker. We all remember the extent to which the Liberals campaigned on this and insisted that the only way a dragway could ever be delivered would be if the Liberals were returned to power. In fact, there was very much a campaign against the Labor Party. This brings to mind the campaign that said, “If you want a dragway, vote Liberal.” Then, of course, the people of Canberra rushed like mad towards the Labor Party. To be fair to the dragway proponents, I believe the message from the Liberal Party that the electorate took most to heart was that which inundated the electorate via that amazing electronic campaign over the last two weeks that said: “Vote as if your life depends on it.” They certainly did. They knew their lives depended on it and they voted in absolute droves as if their lives depended on it.
Opposition members interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Order!
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