Page 2593 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 24 August 1994
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MR HUMPHRIES: I seek leave to make a statement as well, Madam Speaker.
Leave granted.
MR HUMPHRIES: This issue was raised with the legislative drafters when they were drafting the legislation. It was put to them that we need to have a provision there saying expressly that, where a dispute exists between a government agency and a supplier of goods or services, there needs to be a hole in the provisions of the legislation. The draftsman's response to that question was that it is dealt with implicitly by the concept of disputes being taken to some process of resolution in a court. When a matter is under dispute in a court, an agency would have to say, "I am not going to pay this account. Take us to court if you want the account paid, because we are not going to pay this account unless, for example, the services that were rendered badly have been rectified or the goods that were supplied and were defective have been fixed up".
Unless that can take place, the agency has the prerogative of saying, "We are not going to proceed to pay this account". In those circumstances, a dispute exists. Clearly, if the agency goes to the court and obtains a judgment, that judgment overrides the legislation. The agency will not be forced to pay interest to a supplier where it has obtained a judgment to say that it does not have to pay the account in the first place, or has to pay only part of the account, will it? Mr Connolly, I am sure, would concede that point.
Mr Connolly: You are going to have to litigate all these things.
MR HUMPHRIES: If the Government does not believe that it should pay an account and is not prepared to negotiate some other arrangement with the supplier of the goods or the services, then it should go to court and it should deal with the matter in the Magistrates Court or the Supreme Court of this Territory.
Mr Connolly: You have the "Mediate first" poster up in your office, which says that we should not have to go to court.
MR HUMPHRIES: Indeed, they should mediate. The parties can negotiate, pursuant to clause 10 of this legislation, to ensure that there are some mediation provisions in the agreement between the agency and the supplier, if they wish to have them.
Mr Moore: Are you prepared to adjourn the debate at the detail stage? We have to deal with this, and you are not dealing with it satisfactorily. Will you adjourn it at the detail stage?
MR HUMPHRIES: Are you prepared to talk about this during the adjournment?
Mr Moore: I can accept it in principle. Yes, we will adjourn it at the detail stage, at clause 1.
MR HUMPHRIES: All right. Will you adjourn the debate?
Mr Moore: Yes, I will adjourn it.
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