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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 6 Hansard (24 May) . . Page.. 1756 ..

MR BERRY (continuing):

embarrassment for the government that Labor brought forward this bill and exposed them. Mr Smyth, of course, is in denial when he refuses to acknowledge that I have two amendments in front of me, a quite appropriate course to take in relation to the matter. Let me say this: one of-

MR SPEAKER: You must be careful not to address your remarks to the bill.

MR BERRY: Indeed, Mr Speaker, but this is one of the most appalling episodes in which the government has been desperate to avoid talking about this matter. Mr Smyth says it's important that we deal with it now, but Mr Humphries doesn't want to deal with it at all. Now, of course, tomorrow is a busy day, and members of this Assembly will want to respond to the budget. The government would be very happy to clog up the debate tomorrow with this sort of debate, so that there can be no criticism of its budget, though there is plenty of room for it.

Mr Speaker, in relation to the general contribution to this matter, I'm not going to telegraph my punches now. There is adequate room to criticise the government's bill, as I will do in due course given the opportunity, because it is merely a shallow attempt to be the last mark on the post, so to speak, in relation to occupational health and safety. Mr Speaker, the government's approach to the adjournment of this debate and this house in relation to this matter, notwithstanding the fact that this is private members business, is another example-as was the case last week, when we were involved in private members business-of the way the government interferes in private members business to adjourn he house. We have had another episode tonight. This was just another shabby episode that will go on the record for posterity, demonstrating the small-mindedness and the mean-spirited nature of those opposite.

MR STANHOPE (Leader of the Opposition) (10.18): I would like to spend these minutes in the adjournment debate reflecting on the fact that last Sunday, 21 May, was International AIDS Candlelight Memorial Day. I think it is relevant that we address the issue of HIV and AIDS in the Assembly. It is an issue that hasn't been the subject of debate in this house, that I can recall, in the time that I have been here. The international statistics in relation to HIV/AIDS, however, really are quite horrific, and are becoming worse and worse. I think we should reflect on some of those statistics in relation to the infection of people around the world with HIV and AIDS.

I think we should also reflect on the response of Australia, as a nation, and of other industrialised and more wealthy nations around the world, in relation to the AIDS epidemic that is so dreadfully affecting so many nations in the world. At the moment, in the world, there are 331/2 million people living with HIV. There are 1.2 million children under the age of 15 living with HIV-over a million children; 5.6 million people acquired the HIV infection in 1999 and, of those, 570,000 were children. It is feared that nine out of 10 HIV-positive people in the world may not know that they are infected. The proportion of HIV-positive people who are female has risen from 7 per cent, in 1985, to 50 per cent in some nations at present.

Some 16.3 million people have died from HIV/AIDS since the beginning of the pandemic; 2.6 million died from AIDS in 1999, and AIDS is now the leading cause of death in Africa and the number one infectious disease killer in the world. I think they are appalling statistics, Mr Speaker, and I think everybody in this Assembly would agree with that.

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