Page 3030 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 10 September 1991
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conference all State leaders are present, as are a number of Federal Ministers and as are a number of Ministers and delegates from other States. It is an extremely important forum for the discussion of government business, whether at the Federal or the local level, and I am sure that Mr Kaine full well knows that. Indeed, there were some members of Mr Kaine's own party present, and I am pretty sure that they were not present at their own personal expense.
Members' Staff Resources
MR COLLAERY: My question is to the Chief Minister and I refer to the continuing inequity in the allocation of staffing resources within the Assembly. I ask the Chief Minister whether the review of staffing levels for members of this Assembly has yet been completed, as agreed in June last and as requested more recently by the Speaker.
MS FOLLETT: Mr Speaker, I believe that Mr Collaery has his own Bill before this Assembly on that very matter. I believe that it would be appropriate for that Bill to be dealt with by the Assembly if he is serious about it, and I doubt that he is. That is the answer that he has been given, I believe, on this matter. It is up to the Rally to debate that in the Assembly, now that they have brought it before the Assembly.
MR COLLAERY: I have a supplementary question, Mr Speaker. In view of the Chief Minister's reply, may this Assembly take it that Ms Follett puts a greater priority on paying the way for one of her colleagues to a Labor Party conference than on providing an equitable spread of funds to members of this Assembly to represent the people of the Territory? In other words, does she regard her dealings with Assembly funds as a form of political gamesmanship?
MS FOLLETT: There is an implication in that question, Mr Speaker, which I would ask be withdrawn.
Mr Collaery: Mr Speaker, I will withdraw any allegation of political gamesmanship. That was a compliment.
MR SPEAKER: Thank you.
MS FOLLETT: Mr Speaker, as I have said before, Mr Collaery has a Bill before this Assembly and it is up to him to bring it to this Assembly if he is serious about this matter. We have heard, over the years, nothing but complaints from Mr Collaery about his level of staff - complaints that, in large part, have not been heard from other members in this Assembly.
Mr Collaery seems obsessed by the matter and is really incapable of advancing his own case by the very means that he has put forward to this Assembly. If he is serious about it, and if he wants to see the view of the Assembly
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