Page 808 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 9 April 2014
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MS BERRY (Ginninderra) (10.52): I rise to speak briefly to a couple of the points mentioned in Mr Coe’s motion before the Assembly today. I really do think it is a distraction from the main issue. Something that the ACT government is keen on delivering to this city is the development and the protection of quality jobs in our city. Bringing this motion to the Assembly, I think, is to try to distract the government from doing the good work that it is doing by announcing a stimulus package that will create good, quality jobs in the ACT for our community.
Interestingly, I do have to say, though, that my spider senses were tingling when the motion mentioned the state of industrial relations. Then Mr Coe said, “But it’s all right. Don’t worry. This is not an attack on unions.” But coincidentally, on the same day the royal commission into unions is having hearings in New South Wales, this motion is being discussed in the ACT parliament. Yes, I was a bit nervous about that. So I did just want to put that on the record and say that we should not be distracted by these sorts of motions by conservative members of parliament and that we should be concentrating on providing job opportunities, creating good, quality jobs in the ACT and protecting the people that protect people on the worksite.
MR HANSON (Molonglo—Leader of the Opposition) (10.53): I rise today obviously to support this motion. I would like to start by commending Mr Coe for bringing this forward. There were some snide comments made by the minister in his response to this motion. Essentially he was attempting to discredit Mr Coe and boost his own stocks perhaps. But let me assure you, Madam Speaker, that when I am out in the community, when I am speaking to the sector—be it small business, be it consumers or be it big business—they have very little confidence in the minister. My understanding from what I get from the sector is that it is impressed with the grasp of this complex sector by Mr Coe. So I want to put on the record that the truth is far from the sort of—
Mr Barr: Self-praise is no praise at all.
MR HANSON: We have got more interjections now from those opposite but it is important we put that on the record because it is, as unfortunately happened with the unseemly interjection from Mr Barr, more for his side now to try to smear and attack rather than deal with the substance of this debate, which is what the community is calling for.
I commend what Brendan Smyth said as well. He equally shares a passion for this area, as does my colleague Mr Wall who comes from this sector. There was no plug there for Patio World but, as many of you would be aware, he has actually lived this. He has lived this, breathed this and understands these issues personally as builders on the ground.
I am disappointed that we will not be getting the support of the Greens today. I think if it were Caroline Le Couteur sitting in that chair, Madam Speaker, we might. It does seem to me that—
Mr Corbell: You wish, Jeremy, you wish.
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