Page 1145 - Week 04 - Thursday, 21 April 1994
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
MR STEVENSON (12.35): The Chief Minister raises some important points regarding who could be elected that I am sure Mr Humphries will address when he rises. As for the general principle for when there is a retirement from the Assembly, if people in Canberra gave someone enough votes to indicate that they would have wanted that person elected, it is reasonable that that person have that opportunity. A person might be living outside Canberra. They might be just on the other side of the border, or they might be in Sydney. It may have just happened. There is any number of possibilities, I grant you.
We could require a residency qualification. We could say that you have to live in Canberra for one month or three months and have it put off for that time, but would that make any sense? The person would come back to Canberra and fulfil the residency requirement that currently exists. All that would do is slow down the matter. I take your points. I think the more important point is the one you raised about a criminal. I am sure that Mr Humphries will discuss those points. That is something that needs to be handled.
MS SZUTY (12.36): I have some sympathy with what Mr Humphries is attempting to do with his amendment. After all, we are talking about people putting themselves in the running for a casual vacancy in the ACT Legislative Assembly should one arise. Presumably, if that person thought, "Yes, I would like to be a member of the ACT Legislative Assembly", there would be some commitment from them at a future date to return to the ACT and to reside here. I think it would be very beneficial from that person's point of view to be an ACT resident if they sought election and were successful for a casual vacancy. I do have some sympathy with what Mr Humphries is attempting to do.
MR MOORE (12.37): Madam Speaker, I also have some sympathy with what Mr Humphries is trying to do. I just think he is wrong. That was a bit harsh, Madam Speaker. I actually do not think he is wrong. I think that what he is trying to do is to leave it open as far as possible for people who have already made a commitment in that they have gone through an election process in the ACT and done well. However, there have been various examples that I have noticed after elections here. People very rapidly say, "Well, I have done that and it is finished". They have left Canberra, sometimes to pursue a job and sometimes for a civic purpose. Perhaps they feel let down. The Chief Minister raises the point that people who have a real commitment to the ACT are most likely to deliver for the legislature. If people know this beforehand they will know how close they are. They may then determine that they are going to remain in Canberra because they stand a fair chance of being elected on a count-back. I think the amendment is appropriate and I will be supporting it.
MR HUMPHRIES (12.39): I want to deal with a couple of matters, Madam Speaker. I have just been reminded of an example that applied in the Liberal Party's ticket for the last election. These provisions will not apply to any candidates elected at the last election, so this is only for the purpose of illustration. Our No. 7 candidate, who was the next person who obviously would have been elected and would have been elected had we had a count-back provision in this Assembly and if there had been a vacancy of some kind, was offered the chance to do a graduate degree in clinical psychology in a university in Sydney. She cannot do that degree in the ACT; she has to go to Sydney to do it.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .