Page 1559 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 27 September 1989
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have not seen an informed commentary from the Deputy Chief Minister, who appointed himself to take over a debate, again, for reasons best known to himself.
MR DUBY (4.21): Mr Deputy Speaker, I rise to speak also in relation to this matter. To tell you the truth, I am absolutely fascinated to listen to the Deputy Chief Minister describing how this matter is being bulldozed through the house. It has come to my attention that things are bulldozed through the house, according to the Deputy Chief Minister, when he is on the wrong side. "Bulldozed" is not the way to put it.
The fact of the matter is that there has been an enormous amount of consultation amongst the members of this Assembly. This matter has been up for a month. This claim by the Government that it is being bulldozed through, against the wishes of the Canberra community, because it will not be referred to a committee, simply does not hold up. It does not wash. The fact of the matter is that the Government was offered the proposal, long before this debate came into this Assembly, that by all means this matter can be referred to a committee and the committee can recommend one way or the other, but in the meantime, until that committee makes a recommendation, unfortunately the taps get turned off. That is not acceptable.
Apparently, any other way - the taps stay on and the fluoride goes into the water until the committee makes whatever recommendation it may decide to make - is a different kettle of fish. That is bulldozing it through; that is not taking things into consultation. I mean, for goodness sake, we have recently had a whole series of consultations about the budget. Does the Government want to have consultation about fluoride? Does it need an angry crowd of 500 dentists outside this building, screaming that fluoride must be - - -
Mr Whalan: They would be the lisping 40-year-olds.
MR DUBY: Lisping, yes. I will not get into that. Is that what consultation is supposed to mean? Consultation, surely, is for a committee of this Assembly. We are not experts. No-one ever proposed that we were.
Mr Berry: You are pretending you are.
MR DUBY: No, no; on the contrary. What we are trying to assume is that the average people in the street know what is best for them. For someone else to determine what should be ingested into their bodies against their wishes, come what may - they have no choice in the matter - to me is clearly unacceptable.
The arguments have been put in favour of fluoride. Fluoride is there and it will be, I assume and I hope and I will make sure, freely available to those who want it from any health centre throughout the Territory.
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