Page 636 - Week 03 - Tuesday, 12 April 1994
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explanations as to why they would not give it as the reason. But why would it be anything else? The Minister has not provided a good enough alternative reason as to why VicTAB may have taken that action to cut off its nose, to reduce the amount of money it was getting through having a good business deal with ACTTAB.
The sixth point I would like to deal with is the notion of the Minister having a responsibility to table the direction he has made under section 7 of the Act. I find that unconvincing. It should have been required, but I think there is doubt over that legislation as to whether or not he would be required to table that. I do not think it has a great deal to do anyway with the notion of misleading, and this motion is about misleading, whether it is deliberate misleading or reckless misleading.
In an interjection towards the end of the second speech of Gary Humphries, Wayne Berry used these exact words, referring to the Liberals: "It is a web of deception". I found some irony in that. It seems to me that, when we have an impression created that everything is great and going well when it is clearly not, when there clearly are problems that could easily have been shared either in this Assembly in a public way or, as Dennis Stevenson and Helen Szuty have said, in a private way, as indeed the Minister has briefed us on a number of occasions before, then the words "web of deception" ought not apply to the Liberals. It is not just a case of giving an impression that everything is going well; it is also having the opportunity again and again to correct that impression, particularly because this Minister knew at the end of January and the beginning of February that the relationship between VicTAB and ACTTAB had been soured and that notice had been given. That was followed up in writing very shortly after, I think, and members have the details at their fingertips. Madam Speaker, as I sat in our former abode listening to those questions of the Libs, I remember thinking, "Why are they asking these questions?". The reason I kept thinking, "Why are they asking these questions was that the impression I had was that all was well.
MR CORNWELL (10.13): Madam Speaker, I seek leave to speak briefly again on this matter.
Leave granted.
Mr Moore: Very briefly, I hope.
MR CORNWELL: I thank members. I was about to compliment you, Mr Moore. I will still do so. I wanted, first of all, to refer to some comments Mr Wood made about this question of honesty and integrity.
Mr Wood: They are the words you used.
MR CORNWELL: Indeed I did, and I stand by them. That does not mean, Mr Wood, that the Minister concerned has not been deliberately or recklessly misleading the Assembly. Nobody is impugning Mr Berry's honesty. Nobody is suggesting that he is dishonest.
Mr Connolly: I think you are. You are just saying that he is lying to the Assembly and must resign. Apart from that, he is a nice bloke.
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