Page 1274 - Week 05 - Thursday, 31 May 2007
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I said no such thing. As I am sure you all recall, I immediately drew to the attention of Mrs Dunne and the Assembly the fact that I had said no such thing. I actually said it in these terms:
It is difficult to answer questions based on these falsehoods. We have just had a question, the preamble to which said, “You have just advised” … “that you will not proceed to use the bore.” Who else here remembers me saying in question time today that I had just announced that we were planting trees against advice and that I had just announced that we would not use the bore? Who else in this chamber remembers or recalls me saying any of the three things that have just been attributed to me, the … falsehoods that have preceded questions? It is impossible for ministers to answer questions based on lies.
Mrs Dunne stood and raised a point of order that I had called her a liar. Mr Speaker, you asked me to withdraw. I did. I said:
The Hansard stands, of course, and I would be happy to review the Hansard. If Mrs Dunne is standing up now to say that she did not lie, I would be happy to review the Hansard now and to come back … after I have reviewed it and move a substantive motion. I withdraw it for the time being. I will review the transcript.
Mr Smyth then said:
No, no, no, that’s not the form; it’s withdraw. You were ordered to withdraw.
I responded, “It was withdrawn. I did withdraw.” I went on to say:
I just withdrew it, and I am informing members who might wish to correct the record of an option open to me …
In response to that, Mr Seselja stood with integrity and with honour and corrected the record. Mrs Dunne sat silently and smirked. Today, two days later, she stands in this place with the audacity to suggest that the minister for education should be censured for misleading the Assembly.
There is a clear and blatant record of a misleading question by Mrs Dunne to me on Tuesday—which I drew to her attention; which I said was not true; which I referred back to; which I asked her to clarify, which she refused to do—in relation to which I said I would perhaps have no option but to move a substantive motion.
In order not to waste the time of the Assembly, I did not do that. Today is a day for government business. It is 11.40 am. We have legislation to debate and pass; we have to deal with a motion to establish a committee to conduct an important inquiry. We have wasted one hour and 10 minutes today on a spurious political point scoring motion by a member of this Assembly who herself clearly, blatantly and wilfully misled this Assembly the day before her allegation in relation to the minister for education. The bald hypocrisy that is displayed today by Mrs Dunne in relation to her own behaviour on Tuesday is just staggering—staggering. The minister for education has handled this matter appropriately—as has the school, as have the parents, as has the department, as has everybody involved with it. They have handled it appropriately.
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