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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 8 Hansard (31 August) . . Page.. 2794 ..
MR RUGENDYKE (continuing):
But I do understand that it could go either way and that it would be wise to reinstate this provision by inserting it as a new subsection in clause 9. Therefore, I support Mr Stanhope's amendment.
MR STANHOPE (Leader of the Opposition) (6.01): I have to say I agree with the Attorney's sentiments on this-he expressed precisely my point of view. I acknowledge and have thought about the issue of there being a tension between a notion of the best interests of the child and the drawing of a boundary around who might be the subject of a determination. I came to the same conclusion, for the same reasons, as that just expressed by the Attorney. Whilst I accept it is perhaps inconsistent with a notion of the best interest of the child to draw a boundary around how far the legislation extends in a geographical or a physical sense, I, too, feel that at this stage of the development of this law in the ACT we really should confine it to residents in the ACT.
I think we have each made it clear here today that there is a general disquiet about the direction in which we are heading and the depth of the debate that we have had. I, too, want the debate that I think we all know we need to have before we become more expansive on this issue.
The research that I have done in relation to this issue indicates that, for instance, Queensland outlaws both commercial and non-commercial surrogacy. It is an offence under the laws of Queensland for a resident of Queensland to participate in a surrogacy arrangement anywhere in Australia. In effect, Queensland has legislated extraterritorially to make it a criminal offence for any resident of Queensland to participate in surrogacy arrangements. So there is a whole range of approaches and responses, which highlights just how complex this issue is.
Amendment agreed to.
Clause 9, as recommitted, as amended, agreed to.
Bill, as amended, agreed to.
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
MR QUINLAN (6.04): In essence, the opposition will be supporting this bill and the establishment of a separate insurance body. I give notice that I will be moving a large number of amendments in the detail stage. I will speak to them now in order to minimise the time that will be taken in that debate.
When this house was considering a bill to establish the stadiums corporation, I moved a series of amendments to create a stadiums authority. The legislation that is now before the house effectively seeks to set up another statutory authority, just as we set up a statutory authority to look after the operation of stadiums. So a whole series of amendments will be moved to change the title of the ACT Insurance Corporation to that
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