Page 601 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 22 February 2012
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MR HANSON: Well, if he has, good. If he has apologised and he has written, I do not see why we will have any amendments moved here, because essentially you would be saying, “We don’t want him to do that, although he already has.” That seems a bit bizarre. But the government and maybe the Greens would be asking him to withdraw.
What is the impact of this? What are people going to say about our actions here today? We have an opportunity to restore some credibility to this place that Mr Hargreaves has taken away and we can do that by calling on him to apologise, to say that we think that is what he should do. We should call on him to write the letter to apologise because we think that is what he should do. They are quite reasonable, moderate, considered actions.
Anyone in this place that says, “No, we don’t think Mr Hargreaves should be required to do that,” is, in essence, condoning his behaviour and saying, “No, you can come in here, you can spray a community group and we are not going to do anything about it.” And that perhaps is a different standard from those on this side, because we will not come in here and attack community groups.
Debate interrupted in accordance with standing order 74 and the resumption of the debate made an order of the day for a later hour.
Sitting suspended from 12.32 to 2 pm.
Questions without notice
Hospitals—women’s and children’s
MR SESELJA: My question is to the Minister for Health and relates to the women’s and children’s hospital. In the Northside Chronicle on 27 July 2010 you stated that the new building would be constructed and functional before the end of 2011. In a media release dated 7 February this year you stated:
The new building under construction will open mid year as a fully functional Women’s and Children’s Hospital.
Minister, how can ACT residents trust you that the women’s and children’s hospital will be functional “midyear”, when you previously stated that it would be functional by the end of 2011?
MS GALLAGHER: I thank the Leader of the Opposition for the question. The people of Canberra will judge us on what we have delivered, and we have delivered. Everyone who has been out to the Canberra Hospital recently will have seen how fantastic that building is looking—the only, and the first, women’s and children’s hospital in Canberra. And we will have delivered it. It was our idea, as opposed to any policy initiatives that have come out of the opposition in the entire term of this Assembly, of which there have been none that I can recall, whilst we are completely redeveloping the health system. We are building new community centres, new hospitals—
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