Page 611 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 9 March 2011
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
MRS DUNNE: Minister, what has brought about this change in your attitude to the guide for the plan, given that at the outset you were quite sanguine about the possibility of buying water? Why are you suddenly so opposed to the idea?
MR CORBELL: Mr Speaker, I have always been measured and considered in my comments in relation to this matter. That is, of course, in marked contrast to those opposite. I tend to believe that you do the analysis, you look at the detail and then you make your judgements rather than leaping to judgement in the way we have seen from those opposite.
The fact is, Mr Speaker, that the Labor government, the ACT Labor government, is advancing the argument forcefully with the MDBA, with the House of Representatives committee, with the federal minister, with other state and territory ministers to make the case, to make the very clear case, that the ACT deserves a fair deal when it comes to our obligations under the plan when it is released in draft form formally later this year, and that is what we will continue to work towards.
MRS DUNNE: A supplementary question, Mr Speaker?
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Mrs Dunne.
MRS DUNNE: Minister, seeing that you have been so busily making submissions to the MDB inquiry by Mr Windsor and to the authority directly to Mr Knowles, will you provide to the Assembly the documentation that you have provided to them? I note, for instance, that your submission to Mr Windsor’s inquiry is not on the inquiry’s webpage. Will you provide those for the information of members and members of the public?
MR CORBELL: I am very happy to do so. I would, of course, expect in the normal course of events that the bodies that have received our submissions will make them public. Certainly, I am surprised that the House of Representatives committee has not done so. It is normal practice for them to do so. I will make inquires about that matter. In relation to the MDBA review, obviously the MDBA would make all of its submissions available in due course in any event. Again, I will seek clarification about that timing. The government has no objection to making these submissions available to members.
Mr Stanhope: I ask that further questions be placed on the notice paper.
Warnings by Mr Speaker
MRS DUNNE (Ginninderra): Mr Speaker, could I seek your ruling, please, in relation to your fairly common practice of warning people at the moment? In the course of question time I think you warned Mr Seselja and Mr Coe—
MR SPEAKER: Yes.
MRS DUNNE: and at the time my observation was that Mr Seselja and Mr Coe were speaking with one another. I am actually wanting to seek your guidance about what
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video