Page 5407 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 16 November 2011
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to this place. Once again, we have the arrogance of those opposite thinking they are above fact, thinking they are above the truth. Once again, it is Minister Simon Corbell. How many times does Minister Corbell need to be told by this Assembly that he is ineffective and he is wrong in how he deals with information?
This latest in a long list of errors from this minister is about the RSPCA, one of the most respected organisations in the ACT. It is an organisation which does a lot of the government’s work for them, yet it is not funded to do so. It does a lot of work that local governments would do in other jurisdictions. Here—because of its charter, commitment, organisation, fundraising, sponsorship, volunteers, staff, board and leadership—it goes above and beyond. It goes above and beyond, only to be let down by a minister’s arrogance—a minister who says that the chief executive officer was incorrect. He goes on to slur the name of the RSPCA and the chief executive officer of that fine organisation. We are not just talking about one occasion here. It is not just on one occasion but on three occasions in the last month that Minister Corbell has misled this place and misled the community.
Before making any of these assertions, you would think that he would do thorough research. And even after making the assertion, if there was any doubt at all, you would think that he would follow up. That is what a good minister would do. That is what a prudent minister would do. That is what a minister of the ACT government should do. When you have a minister as part of a government controlling a $4.3 billion budget, you would like to think that they are asking the questions and ensuring that there are checks and balances before they slur the name of a community group. And that is what he has done. He has slurred the name of the RSPCA and he has slurred the name of the chief executive officer on three occasions. Occasion 1 was on 27 October 2011, in the Canberra Times. Minister Corbell wrote a letter saying that the chief executive officer was wrong. He said:
Last financial year the Government paid an additional $150,000 to the RSPCA over and above the amount agreed in its funding agreement …
This is wrong. I would think that before writing a letter to the Canberra Times he would make absolutely certain of his facts—absolutely certain. I know that the members on this side would do that in private communications with a constituent, let alone if they were writing a letter to the Canberra Times to be published and forever put on the city’s record. It is totally inappropriate that Mr Corbell should slur the name of the organisation without doing thorough checks and balances.
However, he went on. No 2 took place on 1 November, at the annual report hearings. In a question on 1 November, I said:
Can I quickly ask a question about the RSPCA? It may be that the minister can answer this one. We have heard, minister, that there is an extra $150,000 that the ACT government paid to the RSPCA. Did the money actually get to the RSPCA? If so, on what date and in what form? Was it in kind or was it cash?
Mr Corbell gave an answer. The answer included:
That is a 26 per cent increase in our cash contribution or approximately a $150,000 increase for the period.
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