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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 1 Hansard (13 February) . . Page.. 74 ..

MR HUMPHRIES (continuing):

Mr Deputy Speaker, we have worked hard to produce a range of measures in this statement, and they cover a wide range of areas where issues and concerns have been raised, where resourcing has been an issue, where the quality of work has been an issue, and where the way in which performance and assessment occurs has been an issue. All of those things have been talked about in this paper. Yet we hear people tell us that it is not good enough. Well, I am sick of hearing the claim: "It's not good enough." If people opposite or anywhere else in the chamber want to tell us it is not good enough, they should tell us what they would do instead.

Mr Berry: OK, ditch your AWAs for a start.

MR HUMPHRIES: Again, you are opposed to AWAs. What are you in favour of?

Mr Berry: Collective agreements.

Ms Tucker: Collective bargaining. I think we know what he is in favour of.

MR HUMPHRIES: Collective bargaining. Ms Tucker joins those on the other side of the chamber in favour of collective bargaining.

Ms Tucker: I want you to respond to the concerns I just raised.

MR HUMPHRIES: I will Ms Tucker. In due course I will respond to them. Obviously I will not do so today because I want to go back and research what you said. I want to give you a considered answer. That seems fair enough, don't you think?

Ms Tucker: That is fine. Thank you.

Mr Quinlan: Reorganising can be a wonderful method of creating the illusion of progress.

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Deputy Speaker, the other speakers were heard in relative silence. I ask for a little bit of courtesy.

MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Mr Humphries, that is correct. You have also been asking questions of other members in the chamber so that has encouraged debate. But let us have a little order.

MR HUMPHRIES: Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. The government has outlaid a plan and it at least has the merit that it is a plan. It is a basis for forward action. Mr Berry has described this as public service bashing. I quote again the second sentence of my remarks:

If that is public service bashing I would like to be bashed more often by those opposite.

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