Page 3201 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 24 August 2005
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serious incidents in our health care system that are made without substance, without any proof as to their being correct or accurate.
What Mr Smyth did today was, quite simply, outrageous. To suggest a serious incident involving a person with a weapon and who was mentally ill, causing harm to themself or others was without any substantiation.
Mr Smyth: But the weapon got in.
MR CORBELL: No, the weapon did not get in. The weapon was detected when the client presented to the psychiatric services unit. The question that could be asked is: what was happening prior to the client being presented to the PSU, given that the client was presented to the PSU by the Australian Federal Police? That is something that I will be asking some questions about because I am concerned—
Mr Smyth: Blame the police!
MR CORBELL: No, I am not blaming the police. What I am saying is that I am concerned that they were potentially put at risk because there was no process, or the process did not work, to detect the fact that the person involved was carrying a knife. Those are the facts of the matter. It is unfortunate that once again Mr Smyth does not seem to care about facts when it comes to making allegations in this place.
MR SPEAKER: The minister’s time has expired.
Policing—Civic
Parliamentary rugby team
MR STEFANIAK (Ginninderra) (6.06): There are a couple of matters. I regard the first one as a very unpleasant one. I was concerned to see on the front page and indeed the second page of the Canberra Times today a report in relation to an assault on a young university student aged 22 in the early hours of Saturday morning. In fact, at about 12.30, just a little bit after midnight, the young man was viciously assaulted by three thugs who apparently were dressed in some sort of camouflage gear. He and his mates had apparently been to the pictures. He was seriously injured and, indeed, remains in hospital. That in itself is disturbing enough. I think the paper went on to say that some other people were assaulted.
MR SPEAKER: Mr Stefaniak, you know the rules about referring to something that is going to find its way to the courts.
MR STEFANIAK: I do not think anyone has been apprehended. There was another incident there, which may or may not have involved the same people. It was a real concern to see the level of violence in our community and certainly the level of violence in Civic. I think everyone would like to see Civic as the hub of Canberra, where visitors can come and feel safe. This was not as a result of something happening perhaps in a nightspot, necessarily fuelled by alcohol; it was in the streets, on a main thoroughfare; it was not in a dark alley or anything like that. From the reports, it seemed to be a completely unprovoked attack.
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