Page 2023 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 5 August 2014
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In terms of the experts and the experts’ views, I think they have been well articulated through this report. Again, I come back to the experience that I have had sitting in the various jobs that I have. It is absolutely clear to me that the ACT community, in terms of good governance for the ACT in the years ahead, requires the Assembly to be expanded. I think it also requires the ministry to have a minimum of eight ministers—under that scenario, probably nine—and that that would allow under a 25-member scenario an appropriate level of other MLAs to manage the extensive committee workload that we are now asking just a small number of 11 MLAs to manage, which is a significant load on them as well.
In terms of the right model—25 versus other scenarios—I support the comments made by ACT Labor throughout the submissions that were made. ACT Labor members also made a submission to the expert reference group. In terms of the issues we are dealing with and the need for the cabinet in particular to have membership of between eight and nine, I do not think anything smaller than 25 will deal with those issues. Going to 21 or 23 would be tinkering at the edge but would not actually deliver the number of ministers available to manage the workloads that are going to be required in 2016.
I also think it deals nicely with the communities of interest that are quite well established. We saw that in stark detail in the 2012 election, where there are regions across the ACT. They are quite distinct regions with different views about particular matters. This will deal with that as well.
In terms of the history of self-government, it is clear that independents, Greens and small parties get elected in a five-member electorate. In fact, they have done so in every single election that I can recall. So I do not think that the argument that this entrenches a two-party model is right if you run a good campaign and if you are a good candidate. Let us not put down the Canberra electorate at all. They know who they are voting for. They know who they like. They know who they do not like. When they do not like someone, they get rid of them. This has been what we have seen in various elections since self-government and this will give people greater opportunity to stand for the Assembly.
Instead of 17 members, there will be 25. If there are those who have ever aspired to a political career, 2016 offers them the greatest opportunity since self-government was established to pursue that interest, whether they be a Green, an independent, a member of the Labor Party or a member of the Liberal Party. The reality is, should these bills pass today, that there will be an additional eight vacant seats for people to pursue their political career and add to the political fabric of this esteemed chamber.
This is the right way to go. Twenty-five members will give us the right level of support for the community. Importantly, it will give the community a right level of support for their issues and how they pursue them through this place. It will relieve, as Mr Hanson said, and I agree with him, some of the burden that is currently taken by non-elected representatives within our ACT public service, because they are probably required, because of ministers’ capacity to deal with various portfolios, to take more responsibility than you would see in other jurisdictions. That is the simple reality of the way we are working at the moment.
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