Page 1073 - Week 03 - Thursday, 18 March 2010

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Thursday, 18 March 2010

MR SPEAKER (Mr Rattenbury) took the chair at 10 am and asked members to stand in silence and pray or reflect on their responsibilities to the people of the Australian Capital Territory.

Ministerial arrangements

MR STANHOPE (Ginninderra—Chief Minister, Minister for Transport, Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, Minister for Business and Economic Development, Minister for Land and Property Services, Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs and Minister for the Arts and Heritage): As members would be aware, the legislation that is about to be called on would normally have been introduced by the Attorney-General. For the information of members, Mr Corbell regrets that he is unavailable to be in the Assembly at all today as a result of pressing personal issues.

During the course of today I will be performing the duties of the Attorney-General. I make this comment now in the context too of question time if members were proposing questions for the Attorney-General today. Through question time I will seek to be of whatever assistance I am able. Mr Corbell apologises for his non-attendance today.

Emergencies Amendment Bill 2010

Mr Stanhope, on behalf of Mr Corbell, pursuant to notice, presented the bill, its explanatory statement and a Human Rights Act compatibility statement.

Title read by Clerk.

That this bill be agreed to in principle.

The Emergencies Amendment Bill 2010 provides for amendments to the Emergencies Act 2004 to give effect to the recommendations of the report of the ACT Emergency Management Governance Review.

The act was prepared in response to the report of the McLeod Inquiry into the Operational Response to the January 2003 Bushfires in the ACT. The act established the independent Emergency Services Authority, to replace the Emergency Services Bureau, and associated governance structures including the commissioner, chief officers, emergency management committee, and procedures for the declaration of a state of alert and state of emergency, and the appointment of a territory controller.

Over time there have been minor amendments to the act, and a review was undertaken in August 2006, but the overall governance structure under the act has remained the

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