Page 3723 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 26 August 2009
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misrepresented my statements to constituents and to this Assembly. In fact, he has continued to do this. His misrepresentation is based on assumptions, interpretation and plain falsification of what I actually stated.
The minister has debased the ministerial code. Because of the Chief Minister’s silence on this matter, or his impotence in controlling Minister Barr, Minister Barr now believes that he can do or say anything, even perpetuating falsehoods, which, as he thinks, if he repeats these falsehoods often enough, will be accepted as fact. I think he certainly believes that. The Chief Minister lets him get away with it. His fellow ministers turn a blind eye to his indiscretions, of which this is just one more in a litany that this minister has been allowed to get away with.
The letter to the Non-Government Schools Education Council that Mr Barr tabled in the ACT Assembly last week makes assertions that are false and patently political and are made without any evidence to support it. I have never made statements and no evidence can be found in Hansard, in press releases or in Canberra Liberal policy documents that support the minister’s assertions.
These are the facts. The letter to the Non-Government Schools Education Council is not based on fact; it seeks to misrepresent. As I have said previously, Mr Barr’s actions and his continued disrespect of this Assembly bring shame on him personally and indeed on his party for allowing it. It will also reflect on this Assembly if we let Mr Barr continue to get away with this sort of conduct yet again.
In closing, I would like to focus on what Minister Barr has referred to in his letter to me as the heart of the matter—a letter, I might add, that was only received at the very beginning of proceedings this morning. While we were all here in the chamber, his letter was delivered to my office, not to me prior to the start of proceedings as he would have had us believe—
Mr Barr: That’s a lie. My staff member delivered it to your office before the Assembly began.
MR DOSZPOT: It was not delivered to us in any known fashion, Mr Barr. I was notified of your letter while we were sitting here.
Mr Barr: That is your office’s problem. It was hand-delivered by my staff to your office.
MR DOSZPOT: His duplicity is galling. The minister states:
On 30 April 2009 you demanded that I use the Human Rights Act 2004 to ensure that this review also examined curriculum and pedagogy for students with disabilities in ACT non-government schools. You said in your press release of that day:
The ACT Human Rights Act 2004 also applies to all students with a disability, not just the government sector.
This is the heart of the matter.
I agree, minister; this is the heart of the matter. I called on you to include all students with a disability in the review into special education based on the premise that all
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