Page 3141 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 20 September 1994
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most difficult areas that they had to deal with. One cannot help wondering why the Government, under Mr Berry, was not prepared to take it into the pubs and clubs. Could it have had anything to do with the influence of the Labor Club, for example? That is a good question for us to ask. How many people smoke at the Labor Club? Do we want restrictions on smoking at the Labor Club, or any other club? What was the influence of the clubs? What donations are made by the clubs?
These are all questions that we have to ask ourselves in the same spirit as that in which Mr Berry interjected before, when he talked about people being run or influenced by the tobacco companies and so forth. Madam Speaker, if the debate is to be run in this sort of way, I am certainly prepared to turn it back on the Government. I would prefer to recognise that what we had from the Government, in the initial instance, was an approach that said, "We are interested in improving the lot of our society as far as smoke goes. We are interested in dealing with the issue of passive smoking. We are interested in being leaders in Australia in these areas, and we are interested, from the population's health perspective, in showing active smokers that they are participating in something that is very bad for their health. In doing that, we hope to reduce the problems with health".
Madam Speaker, that is an appropriate approach, and it is an approach in which all members of the Assembly are interested. That is why all members of the Assembly agreed to pass the Bill at the in-principle stage. Even after having done that, we have heard Mr Berry mislead the public on this matter time and again. The latest occasion was this morning on ABC radio. We are all interested in attempting to improve the population's health as far as smoking goes. We have a slight difference of opinion on how we should go about it. The Government feels that it should simply make a major statement in relation to restaurants. The rest of us believe that we ought to take it further than restaurants and include pubs, clubs and the casino. The Government feels that it should be a blanket ban. The rest of us feel that we ought to take a more rational and sensible approach.
Behind all of that, after going beyond the sort of debating that Mr Berry has wanted to engage in on this, we get a genuine public health concern that all members of this Assembly share. I would like to see the debate tonight carried on in that tone. We have a difference of opinion on how we go about it; but that should be recognised as a sensible difference of opinion. Assembly members share an important goal, and that was identified by the fact that all members of the Assembly passed this Bill in principle.
MS ELLIS (8.12): Madam Speaker, I feel compelled to say just a few words at this point in the debate, particularly considering some of the comments made by Mr Moore just a moment ago. As a member of the committee that looked at this legislation and, as well, being the one dissenting voice in the committee's report, I want to make it perfectly clear - I think that I did at the time of the tabling of the report, but it is essential that I unequivocally make that point again tonight - that there was absolutely no consideration in my mind, in respect of whether or not clubs and pubs should be considered in this legislation, of the number of smokers and drinkers at the Labor Club, the "Tradies" club, as Mr De Domenico interjected, or anywhere else. It was not part of my consideration at all. What I said at the time of the tabling of the report of that committee was that we
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