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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 11 Hansard (25 September) . . Page.. 3350 ..

MR HUMPHRIES (Attorney-General) (11.48): Can I make a brief contribution, Mr Speaker. Mr Wood made the comment that, in the past, amendments have, as he put it, changed motions around. I think it is true to say that the targets of motions have certainly been changed around in the past. A motion condemning the government has been turned into a motion condemning the opposition, or whatever it might be; that is true. But I do not think we have had - Mr Wood can correct me if I am wrong - a case where the subject matter of the motion has been turned around. As Mr Kaine points out, the subject matter of this motion is much narrower than and is, in fact, quite different to the subject matter of Mr Moore's motion.

Ms McRae's argument is as follows: Because the subject of capital works in the Territory as a whole contains capital works on the lakes, therefore, the reverse must be true; the subject of capital works on the lakes contains the subject of capital works in the Territory as a whole. That, Mr Speaker, is not logical. If she were moving her amendment about capital works in the Territory and Mr Moore were just talking about the lakes, that would certainly be true, because that is the subset of what Ms McRae is talking about. But what Ms McRae is talking about is much bigger than what Mr Moore was talking about. I also have to say that I think the argument that the Assembly should disregard standing orders and rely rather on the floor of the Assembly to resolve interpretation of standing orders is not - - -

Ms McRae: We are just doing it now.

MR HUMPHRIES: That is not what we have ever done before. The Speaker would not be necessary if it were the case that we could resolve every dispute about standing orders by a vote on the floor of the Assembly, rather than by having a Speaker.

Question resolved in the negative.

LAKES AND FORESHORES

Debate resumed.

MR SPEAKER: Ms Horodny, I think you have an amendment, do you?

Ms McRae: No; I was on my feet.

MR SPEAKER: I am sorry.

Ms McRae: Thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Moore: You have run out of time, of course. However, we would love to give you leave to speak.

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