Page 4625 - Week 14 - Thursday, 24 November 2005
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turn up to committee hearings. He will not read reports. He will not contribute to committee inquiries. It is a signal—and we see it again today with this motion—
Mrs Dunne: I take a point of order, Mr Speaker. The Chief Minister is spending a lot of time talking about Mr Seselja’s supposed incapacity to read reports—
MR SPEAKER: He has been ordered to come back to the subject matter. Resume your seat, Mrs Dunne.
Mrs Dunne: That is pretty rich from someone who, by his own admission, does not read reports.
MR SPEAKER: It is not a point of order.
MR STANHOPE: If my motion to suspend standing orders does not succeed—and I find it remarkable that we are debating the motion at all—then, for the first time in my eight years in this place, an opposition will have sent a signal that it does not wish to receive government reports. Why does it not wish to receive government reports? It is because it might be forced to read them; it might be forced to respond to them; and it might be forced to do some work.
It is remarkable that the Liberal Party of the ACT, through its leader, has sent a signal twice in a row now that it does not wish to receive reports. Why does it not wish to receive them? There are two excuses. The first is that it is a lazy opposition, an opposition that does not wish to work. It does not wish to work either because it does not have the capacity to work or because it is simply petulant and childish. They are the choices. You have two choices here. At best you are lazy, disorganised and uninterested and have given up the ghost. At worst, you are simply being petulant and childish. You choose.
You have been petulant and childish in responding to a scathing criticism of Mr Seselja. We saw him blush red, not just at his designation as “scooter”, but also at being revealed as somebody who simply refuses point blank to work. He is an incredibly lazy non-executive member of the planning committee. He will not work. This is the petulant response to his exposure as a member of this place who will not work.
Mr Stefaniak: The Chief Minister said he does not recall this situation occurring before. That is an absolute nonsense; check Hansard. I seem to recall occasions when members from both sides of the house have failed to advise that matters have been added to the notice paper. Leave often has not been granted.
Motion (by Mr Corbell) put:
That the question be now put.
The Assembly voted—
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