Page 2911 - Week 07 - Thursday, 7 June 2012
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
The recommendations from the committee report are pretty clear. Mrs Dunne has been through them. There is a very clear case that the Fitters Workshop be used as a multipurpose facility, and the arguments have been well presented. I think it is time that Ms Burch listened to the committee and listened to the community. If she did so she would hear that the community could be united. There might be some kickback in the short term from Megalo, but I think by the time they are provided with their purpose-built facility in the Kingston arts precinct they will be pretty happy with this solution. So she has an opportunity to unite the community that is currently divided as a result of her actions and as a result of the decision she made based on a previous decision made by Mr Stanhope.
I am very disappointed by Ms Porter’s role in all this because it is quite clear to me that throughout the committee process she was on board; she heard the evidence as we did and was supportive of the recommendations and then did an almighty backflip at the eleventh hour, coincidentally shortly after Mr Stanhope visited the building. I am sure it is all a big coincidence! But she went weak at the knees and it appears that the Greens have gone weak at the knees. I do not know what the final vote is going to be on this but it is very clear what the consequence of this sort of amendment would be. It is a sort of meandering third way: “Let’s cook up something because we’re not quite sure. We want to keep the government happy, but we’re confused. We’re conflicted.” It is typical Caroline Le Couteur—incoherent, create more confusion, throw more mud at the whole thing. It does not provide any clarity to the committee.
What does this mean? Why are we getting all of these extra documents? What are we meant to do with them? We have had a process that has been agreed to by Amanda Bresnan, as the chair, by me, and by Ms Porter until the eleventh hour. It is a good way forward. This amendment is a nonsense because it does not satisfy anybody. It just creates more confusion. Who knows what the outcome of this would be? But I can guess.
It is quite clear that, given half a chance—in fact given a crack of daylight—this minister will be putting Megalo into the Fitters Workshop. And the only way we can stop that is to have a clear and unambiguous motion, as Mrs Dunne has put forward, that says no. The numbers in this chamber say no, because the community broadly does not want that to happen and the evidence as presented to the committee makes a clear case that it should be a multipurpose facility. So we can send a clear and unambiguous message to the government: “No, you’re not to do that. You are to follow what the committee recommended.”
This amendment would probably give Ms Burch the ability to squeak through and do what she wants, prevaricate, and we will end up with Megalo in there. But what will happen is that it will probably cause more problems in many ways than what has been agreed by Ms Burch, because at least Ms Burch has made a decision. It is the wrong one, but what we are seeing from the Greens today is an attempt to try and walk the tightrope, walk the fence, not make a decision. It is too late for that, Mr Speaker. You are either with it or you are against it in terms of this committee report. You cannot try and have a half-pregnant solution on this one.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video