Page 17 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 14 February 2012
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This is rank hypocrisy, Mr Speaker. We know that Ms Gallagher, for example, has her partner working in the Assembly. We know that he is involved in the production of Assembly documents. We know that he works on the same floor as the Liberal Party between two different offices. We do not consider that a problem. We have never raised it as an issue. We do not see it as an issue.
But if we were to judge the same way the Labor Party is trying to judge us, where is the double standard? Where is it that we cannot have someone who is employed as a distant family member, whereas the Labor Party can seemingly do what they want, have their president working for them and have preselected candidates working for them? I do note that Ms Drake has now moved on to Senator Lundy’s office.
This is politically motivated. If there is an examination of Mr Seselja’s office—and he welcomes that—let us have an examination of other offices. For example, let us have a look at Mr Barr’s office. I am sure that Mr Barr or none of his staff spent a moment of their time in the Assembly gearing up for the national conference this year where he led the debate on gay marriage. I am sure he never made a single phone call, nor did any of his staff members, nor were there any emails at all about the issue of the national conference of the Labor Party. I am sure that would be the case. I am sure that if we had a fearless examination of Mr Barr’s office, that could be confirmed.
Let us see Mr Barr welcome an examination, because I am sure he was not lobbying on the phones using taxpayers’ resources. He was not using his email system. He was not using his time when he was meant to be a minister and the Treasurer of the ACT. No, he was not using any of that time to lobby and to work the numbers for the national conference of the Labor Party. Unless he is going to be prepared to have an open examination of his office, all his phone records, all his email transactions, then how is that not rank hypocrisy? That is absolute hypocrisy.
What we have seen from the Labor Party over the last number of years is a series of failures of governance of the ACT. We have seen problems with systemic bullying at the Canberra Hospital that Katy Gallagher denied. But when the report came through, it found evidence of systemic reticence to address staff performance issues, a total lack of cohesion with the executive staff at Canberra Hospital, staff members stretched to the limit with workloads and extensive barriers for medical staff interested in working at the Canberra Hospital. So there were extensive problems.
We saw the downgrading of elective surgery patients inappropriately. We saw the whole Calvary hospital fiasco where Katy Gallagher said that all her plans were on the table but, in reality, they were not, because she had written letters to the Little Company of Mary asking that there be a heads of agreement. She did that before the last election.
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Mr Hanson, can you remain relevant, please?
MR HANSON: Yes, I will. We have seen mismanagement from this government. There was $900,000 just last year that we missed out on for missing elective surgery
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