Page 715 - Week 02 - Thursday, 23 February 2012
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The equal representation argument does not wash. There is a Speaker and then each of the parties has an Assistant Speaker or a Deputy Speaker—one, two, three. That is equality. That is equal enough. The problem here is that this will just go on and on. Should he ever have to represent us as an Assistant Speaker—indeed, every time he sits here and makes a judgement as an Assistant Speaker—people would be right in their thinking to say, “Isn’t he the bloke that said …” Then they could list several things—“Fill this slot with the appropriate slur.”
How can he sit there and judge, administer and rule when he has been shown—so many times, over so many years, with so much leeway, with so many second chances—to continually falter? It is time to move on. It would be the right thing for the member to simply accept the argument and accept that it is time to go. That is the appropriate thing to do. It is a shame that we are even doing this. It is interesting that the Labor Party did not want him in a position of authority inside the party. I do not think we as a parliament should say that we will accept having him in a position of authority in our parliament. It is time for the member to resign.
MS BRESNAN (Brindabella) (10.55): I am going to speak very briefly on this matter. It has been mentioned today that there was an incident that involved me and Mr Hargreaves, but I note that it also involved Mr Smyth. I accepted an apology from both Mr Hargreaves and Mr Smyth. So the shoe was on the other foot. I accepted those apologies. I never sought to make that incident a public matter. I do not know to this day who did, but I accepted an apology from both Mr Hargreaves and Mr Smyth. I think it is worth noting that.
As Mr Barr said in his speech, there have been things said in this chamber by other members that were particularly nasty, and nothing happened with that. So this argument that we would not do anything if the shoe was on the other foot is not correct: that has been borne out and we have dealt with the matter in the same way as we have with the Labor Party.
MS GALLAGHER (Molonglo—Chief Minister, Minister for Health and Minister for Territory and Municipal Services) (10.56): I too will just speak briefly on this matter this morning, as I see this as yet another example of the Liberal Party trying to have private members’ day flow over to Thursday. Mr Hargreaves has made a mistake, as many of us do. We are all human.
Mr Hargreaves has done the responsible thing and offered his resignation from a position of authority, not just in the party but in this parliament. He has done it in a very public way, not the underhanded, sneaky way that the Liberal Party was going about yesterday, trying to get a little ahead of everybody and have this confected outrage suit them on the front page of the paper and have Mr Hargreaves on the back foot. He fronted up, he manned up, he came in here, he said what he had done was wrong and he offered his resignation in a very public way.
The matter should have rested there but the Liberal Party, wounded by Mr Seselja’s inability to manage his own affairs, deeply wounded by that, have decided that they need to continue this nasty attack on a man who has responsibly owned up to a
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