Page 2358 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 1 November 1989
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To suggest publicly and openly that I did so is something about which I really take offence. I really think that the member concerned ought to search his conscience and ask himself whether, if he feels this way about members of this Assembly, he ought to dissociate himself from all committees because he might be biased and have this sort of allegation levelled against him. I suggest he should consider whether he should resign from any committee on which he currently sits. Having regard to the fact that he was elected to it as a member of the Residents Rally and not as an independent, one must question whether he can act independently on any committee. He himself has raised the question, Mr Speaker; I did not.
So I do object and I think that while the Deputy Chief Minister's approach was, on the face of it, reasonable, he is in fact arguing against himself and against the concept of the integrity of members of this Assembly.
MR WOOD (5.50): Mr Speaker, I rise to make one comment only, and that is that there was certainly no attempt anywhere along the line, either directly or indirectly, by the Follett Government to express a view to this committee. I am very well positioned to know if such a thing had happened and, as part of this debate, I would like to assure the chamber that any suggestion that the Follett Government had a role in this is quite incorrect.
DR KINLOCH (5.51): These are rather sad matters. Perhaps I am not tough enough for this Assembly. I often think perhaps I am not.
Mr Moore: Clown!
Mr Jensen: I take a point of order, Mr Speaker. Mr Moore referred to Dr Kinloch as a clown and I think that is totally inappropriate. I request you to ask him to withdraw.
MR SPEAKER: He was not speaking. It was an aside, Mr Jensen. Please keep your language civil, Mr Moore. Please proceed, Dr Kinloch.
DR KINLOCH: I take no umbrage at all, I assure you. Because I feel sometimes sad about these things, perhaps in a Pollyanna-like way, it well could be that I need a thicker skin, to be sure.
I wish we could go back three squares, and I wonder whether it would be possible first of all for Mr Moore to withdraw his press release and then for Mr Duby to withdraw his motion.
I would just like to note that, when Mr Jensen and I saw the committee report this morning, it was the first time we knew what was going to be in that report. There had been no attempt whatsoever to chivvy anybody into any particular position on that report and I assure the Assembly that Mr Collaery was acting on his own independent judgment.
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