Page 2697 - Week 12 - Thursday, 16 November 1989

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Mr Speaker, remembrance of the Holocaust and events which surrounded it is appropriate for this Assembly this week and I am certain that all of the members here would support remembrance of that significant period in this century and look forward to the expansion of human rights throughout all of the world for as long as we care to foreshadow.

Socialism

MR STEVENSON (5.47): The Chief Minister, on the matter of the convention on the rights of the child, said that I was saying - - -

MR SPEAKER: Mr Stevenson, I draw your attention to standing orders 58 and 59. I hope you are not going on to debate the issue that is before the house.

MR STEVENSON: Good heavens, no. I am not going to debate it; just talk all about it.

MR SPEAKER: Well, I am afraid I will have to rule on that. I draw your attention to standing order 58, which states:

A Member shall not digress from the subject matter of any question under discussion: Provided that:

(a) on a motion to adjourn the Assembly, irrelevant matters may be debated ...

This is not an irrelevant matter. I will take you to standing order 59, which says that a member may not anticipate any discussion of any subject which appears on the notice paper for further discussion.

MR STEVENSON: It does not say anything about the Speaker anticipating what I was going to do.

MR SPEAKER: Well, I certainly disagree. I asked you the question and you said you were going to talk on that matter.

MR STEVENSON: Indeed. That is fine. I understand that. As I said a few moments ago, so much for the right of reply to the rather fascinating information that has been passed across by various people. Perhaps I can make a comment on what was said. Mr Speaker, do we need a quorum? (Quorum formed)

I think I will take the opportunity to mention something that was spoken about last night regarding the problems with various governments, such as Lenin's Soviet socialism and Hitler's Nazi party. There has been much attention given to left- and right-wing politics in this and other countries. I think it worth while to make a point that perhaps the stellar example of left-wing politics or left-


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