Page 2004 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 8 September 1992
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electoral boundaries in place and the electoral legislation passed by the Assembly, all completed, by, at the latest, the end of 1993. That gives us well over a year before the election is due in February of 1995 for the community to be properly informed and to become accustomed to the new system.
Working towards that timetable, Madam Speaker, the Government has as an objective a two-stage approach to the process. The first thing that we will do will be to work towards the enactment of legislation this year to establish an ACT Electoral Commission. The ACT Electoral Commission will have the immediate task of determining the electoral boundaries for the ACT, and quite clearly there needs to be a public process in undertaking that task. I fully accept members' views that this is a task that we need to get on with, and indeed we are getting on with it.
The second stage of this two-stage process would be the introduction into the Assembly next year - I hope early next year - of the substantive electoral legislation. That is, I believe, by far the more complex part of the task and, as I have outlined, work is proceeding on those complexities. I hope, Madam Speaker, that that might put members' minds at rest. The task is being got on with in a responsible manner. The recruitment of an officer with some expertise, whilst it is an important part of that task, is not the only part of it.
I rather regret that there has been speculation that the Government is not addressing the issue. I particularly regret that there also has been speculation, which I think is quite mischievous, that we will go to the 1995 election with the existing electoral system. Madam Speaker, I believe that that is absolutely out of the question. As I have said publicly, I will implement the decision made by the Canberra community on a new electoral system, and that is unequivocal. They have made it quite clear that they want the Hare-Clark system; that is what they will get, and they will get it well before the next election.
Over-award Payments
MR DE DOMENICO: Madam Speaker, my question without notice is to the Minister for Industrial Relations, Mr Berry. I ask the Minister whether he will stand by his colleague Mr Connolly in the responsible stance that Mr Connolly has taken and ensure that outdated over-award payments within the ACT service and anything to do with the ACT Government are stamped out.
MR BERRY: I think, first of all, you had better get what Mr Connolly said right. You might be organising yourself a trip overseas for a bit of an indoctrination by a foreign government, and you are entitled to do that; but you have to pay attention to the issues here. Whether you understand it or not, the public sector in the ACT is under paid rates awards, and employees are entitled only to payment in terms of those awards. Where a dispute arises in relation to a particular payment, the matter is normally dealt with by management and, where there is a difference between management and the union, the Government always encourages that the matter be settled in the Industrial Relations Commission, as we have done in this case.
Mr Kaine: I thought Mr Connolly was going to stamp them out. Those were his words.
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