Page 597 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 22 February 2012
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I know it is going off the topic as such, but I have to address the comments Mr Smyth made in his speech that because Labor and the Greens had their stalls next to each other at the Multicultural Festival it is a sign of some sort of conspiracy. Well, on the Saturday Labor and Liberal had their stalls close together, and I saw Mr Coe and Dr Bourke handing out balloons together. I do not know if that is a sign of some conspiracy. And on the Sunday all our stalls were together in the same row—Liberal, Labor and Greens. Probably all that is the sign of is the fact that the organisers thought, “Why don’t we just put all the stalls for the political parties together?” That is probably all it actually was, so there was no actual real conspiracy there.
Mr Hanson: Is this relevant to the debate?
MR SPEAKER: Mr Smyth introduced the topic, Mr Hanson.
MS BRESNAN: Indeed, he did introduce the topic. As I said, we will be supporting the amendments that Ms Burch will be moving. I will be at the next Tuggeranong Community Council meeting, as I have been at other meetings. I think I have only missed a couple of meetings due to various circumstances. I will be happy to address any concerns they have about why we did not support the censure motion and why we will support Ms Burch’s amendments today.
I reiterate that I do not share the comments Mr Hargreaves made. I do not believe anything we have done condones those comments. I know Mr Smyth will be presenting another argument—quite often, I imagine—but we do not condone them at all. As I said, I will be at that meeting and will be happy to address that, just as I am happy to address any concerns that come up at Tuggeranong Community Council meetings whenever I can.
MR HANSON (Molonglo) (12.21): Let me make the point at the outset that what Mr Hargreaves did was to cross a line. We all understand that there is rough and tumble in this place. We are political adversaries. We will attack each other, which is the standard form of any political party and individuals. We oppose each other, there will be jibes, and that is the rough and tumble that we all expect and we all understand within a Westminster parliamentary system.
But Mr Hargreaves crossed the line when, as he just said in his speech, in responding to the Canberra Liberals—in attacking the Canberra Liberals, as he is saying—he essentially used the Tuggeranong Community Council and its members as his weapon. So he did not go after Mr Smyth. In actual fact, if you read Mr Hargreaves’s speech, he praised Mr Smyth. He said:
I will say something about Mr Smyth. We have been combatants and foes across the field for a decade and a half. I will pay respect to Mr Smyth: he has been a very good advocate for our electorate; I will say that. The shame of it all, however, Mr Speaker, is that he does go to that old persons club called the Tuggeranong Community Council …
We have just heard Mr Hargreaves in this place say that his whole motive for attacking the Tuggeranong Community Council was not because of a problem with
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