Page 4045 - Week 13 - Thursday, 10 November 1994
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MS ELLIS (12.07): Madam Speaker, in addressing this report today, I must make some comment on the dissenting report by Mr Humphries, along with comment on the general thrust of the committee's majority report. Mr Humphries, very sadly in my view, has started off his dissenting report with the words "a low point in the committee process". I take great exception to that.
Mr Humphries: You should not have been part of the process, should you?
Mr Moore: That was slimy, Gary, and you know it.
Mr Humphries: It is true.
MS ELLIS: Madam Speaker, this is an incredibly important issue. I would be very grateful if people paid me the courtesy of listening to what I have to say. They can debate it later.
We are talking about a dramatic and major change to how we in the ACT, as a community, govern ourselves. The Liberals appear to believe that, if they think a policy on CIR is a great idea for an election campaign, they do what they call a complete consultation on it, and come up with their proposal; and that all the rest of the ACT needs to do is say, "Good; great idea; terrific; we believe you; let us do it". If you dissent from that, you seem to be dissenting from the philosophy that they are pretending to represent. But it is not good enough to have that attitude; it is not responsible; it is a flibbertigibbet way of creating what we should seriously consider proper policy.
Members interjected.
MADAM SPEAKER: Order! Members will come to order. You will have your turn to speak.
MS ELLIS: How can Mr Humphries assert that a committee created by the members of this place to consider carefully and responsibly all - and I repeat "all" - aspects of this huge change to our democratic process is a low point?
Mr Stevenson: I did not. I knew what it was all about. I voted against it.
MADAM SPEAKER: Order! Mr Stevenson, you will have your turn. I call you to order.
MS ELLIS: It seems to me to reflect a proper, democratic way of looking at an issue of this dimension. One of the Liberals' major criticisms of the referral of this issue to the committee was the lack of time to consider the issues. What would you expect that this Assembly should do? Simply say, "Oh, you have brought it on a bit late; we are running out of time; it is a good idea, so we will go ahead and do it"?
Mr De Domenico: No; debate the Bill that has been there for a year and let us see how you are going to vote on it.
MADAM SPEAKER: Mr De Domenico, order!
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