Page 5732 - Week 15 - Thursday, 10 December 2009
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already quite significant penalties. For example, the Greens’ amendment No 3 potentially exposes executive officers to a penalty of up to five times the premium that otherwise would be payable.
The Canberra Liberals consider that the provisions, as drafted in the bill, satisfactorily cover what is required to ensure an executive officer of a corporation can be held to account. One element, for example, is that the director of a corporation that does not have an approved workers compensation insurance policy, who is also injured in the course of their employment with the corporation, cannot claim compensation from the default insurance fund. So that director, as well as being unable to make a claim, may very well be exposed to the civil penalties that apply in the bill to executive officers. The Canberra Liberals will not be supporting this suite of amendments.
Amendments negatived.
Remainder of bill, as a whole, agreed to.
Bill, as amended, agreed to.
Standing and temporary orders—suspension
Motion (by Mr Corbell) proposed:
That so much of the standing and temporary orders be suspended as would prevent the Civil Partnerships Amendment Bill 2009 (No 2) being called on and debated forthwith.
MRS DUNNE (Ginninderra) (4.44): The Canberra Liberals will not be supporting the suspension of standing orders. I understand why the minister wants to debate this today; it has been said that there is some urgency about this because there is some possibility that the commonwealth might act. It is not my view that the commonwealth will act, because the government has flagged its intentions to amend this legislation and there is a bill on the table, so I think it would be unwise of the commonwealth to act in this regard. It is not normal practice to introduce and debate a bill; it is contrary to the standing orders, and I do not think that the minister has mounted a strong enough case to suspend standing orders.
Question resolved in the affirmative, with the concurrence of an absolute majority.
Civil Partnerships Amendment Bill 2009 (No 2)
Debate resumed from 8 December 2009, on motion by Mr Corbell:
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
MRS DUNNE (Ginninderra) (4.46): The Canberra Liberals will not be supporting this bill, which seeks to amend the Civil Partnerships Act to comply with the commonwealth’s requirements.
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