❓ Question regarding the impact of electoral reform on rural representation, with the Premier's response focusing on attacking the Leader of the Opposition's record and intentions, rather than directly answering the question.
AnsweredQoN 210Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
ELECTORAL REFORM 210. Mr TEMPLEMAN to the Premier: I refer to the Leader of the Opposition’s claims that the electoral reform legislation introduced yesterday by the Minister for Electoral Affairs will deny country people an effective voice in Parliament by shifting eight seats from the regions to the metropolitan area. How many country seats would be abolished under the Leader of the Opposition’s electoral reform policy? Dr GALLOP
AnswerView source ↗
We all saw the Leader of the Opposition’s performance and feigned anger in the Parliament and in the media yesterday about the consequences of establishing principle at the heart and soul of Western Australia’s electoral system - the Legislative Assembly. We saw that feigned anger. We saw the Leader of the Opposition cry crocodile tears over the impact of those policies on the electoral system in Western Australia. We know that this Leader of the Opposition does not care about rural and regional Western Australia. He has got form: he was the Minister for Energy who compromised the uniform electricity tariff and he was the minister who pushed the gold tax in this Parliament. He has so much form that his colleague the member for Ningaloo said on 27 February, after he had failed by just three votes to become the Leader of the Opposition, that “Mr Barnett was not seen to be sympathetic to country people”. They know what he thinks of the interests of country people, because they saw him in action as a minister. Further, the Western Australian people know what he stands for. I quote from an article in The Australian newspaper entitled “Premier-hopeful to dump upper House” - Deputy Liberal leader Colin Barnett wants to abolish the West Australian upper house if he succeeds Richard Court as premier after next year’s State election. That is the view of the Leader of the Opposition. Seventeen members of the Legislative Council hold regional seats. Under the plan supported by this Leader of the Opposition, 17 rural and regional representatives will be lost from our Parliament. What is more, under that plan, the House of Review, which plays a crucial role of checks and balances in our system of government, would be lost. The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
ELECTORAL REFORM
I refer to the Leader of the Opposition’s claims that the electoral reform legislation introduced yesterday by the Minister for Electoral Affairs will deny country people an effective voice in Parliament by shifting eight seats from the regions to the metropolitan area. How many country seats would be abolished under the Leader of the Opposition’s electoral reform policy? Dr GALLOP replied: We all saw the Leader of the Opposition’s performance and feigned anger in the Parliament and in the media yesterday about the consequences of establishing principle at the heart and soul of Western Australia’s electoral system - the Legislative Assembly. We saw that feigned anger. We saw the Leader of the Opposition cry crocodile tears over the impact of those policies on the electoral system in Western Australia. We know that this Leader of the Opposition does not care about rural and regional Western Australia. He has got form: he was the Minister for Energy who compromised the uniform electricity tariff and he was the minister who pushed the gold tax in this Parliament. He has so much form that his colleague the member for Ningaloo said on 27 February, after he had failed by just three votes to become the Leader of the Opposition, that “Mr Barnett was not seen to be sympathetic to country people”. They know what he thinks of the interests of country people, because they saw him in action as a minister. Further, the Western Australian people know what he stands for. I quote from an article in The Australian newspaper entitled “Premier-hopeful to dump upper House” - Deputy Liberal leader Colin Barnett wants to abolish the West Australian upper house if he succeeds Richard Court as premier after next year’s State election. That is the view of the Leader of the Opposition. Seventeen members of the Legislative Council hold regional seats. Under the plan supported by this Leader of the Opposition, 17 rural and regional representatives will be lost from our Parliament. What is more, under that plan, the House of Review, which plays a crucial role of checks and balances in our system of government, would be lost. The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
Dr GALLOP replied: We all saw the Leader of the Opposition’s performance and feigned anger in the Parliament and in the media yesterday about the consequences of establishing principle at the heart and soul of Western Australia’s electoral system - the Legislative Assembly. We saw that feigned anger. We saw the Leader of the Opposition cry crocodile tears over the impact of those policies on the electoral system in Western Australia. We know that this Leader of the Opposition does not care about rural and regional Western Australia. He has got form: he was the Minister for Energy who compromised the uniform electricity tariff and he was the minister who pushed the gold tax in this Parliament. He has so much form that his colleague the member for Ningaloo said on 27 February, after he had failed by just three votes to become the Leader of the Opposition, that “Mr Barnett was not seen to be sympathetic to country people”. They know what he thinks of the interests of country people, because they saw him in action as a minister. Further, the Western Australian people know what he stands for. I quote from an article in The Australian newspaper entitled “Premier-hopeful to dump upper House” - Deputy Liberal leader Colin Barnett wants to abolish the West Australian upper house if he succeeds Richard Court as premier after next year’s State election. That is the view of the Leader of the Opposition. Seventeen members of the Legislative Council hold regional seats. Under the plan supported by this Leader of the Opposition, 17 rural and regional representatives will be lost from our Parliament. What is more, under that plan, the House of Review, which plays a crucial role of checks and balances in our system of government, would be lost. The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
We all saw the Leader of the Opposition’s performance and feigned anger in the Parliament and in the media yesterday about the consequences of establishing principle at the heart and soul of Western Australia’s electoral system - the Legislative Assembly. We saw that feigned anger. We saw the Leader of the Opposition cry crocodile tears over the impact of those policies on the electoral system in Western Australia. We know that this Leader of the Opposition does not care about rural and regional Western Australia. He has got form: he was the Minister for Energy who compromised the uniform electricity tariff and he was the minister who pushed the gold tax in this Parliament. He has so much form that his colleague the member for Ningaloo said on 27 February, after he had failed by just three votes to become the Leader of the Opposition, that “Mr Barnett was not seen to be sympathetic to country people”. They know what he thinks of the interests of country people, because they saw him in action as a minister. Further, the Western Australian people know what he stands for. I quote from an article in The Australian newspaper entitled “Premier-hopeful to dump upper House” - Deputy Liberal leader Colin Barnett wants to abolish the West Australian upper house if he succeeds Richard Court as premier after next year’s State election. That is the view of the Leader of the Opposition. Seventeen members of the Legislative Council hold regional seats. Under the plan supported by this Leader of the Opposition, 17 rural and regional representatives will be lost from our Parliament. What is more, under that plan, the House of Review, which plays a crucial role of checks and balances in our system of government, would be lost. The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
ELECTORAL REFORM
I refer to the Leader of the Opposition’s claims that the electoral reform legislation introduced yesterday by the Minister for Electoral Affairs will deny country people an effective voice in Parliament by shifting eight seats from the regions to the metropolitan area. How many country seats would be abolished under the Leader of the Opposition’s electoral reform policy? Dr GALLOP replied: We all saw the Leader of the Opposition’s performance and feigned anger in the Parliament and in the media yesterday about the consequences of establishing principle at the heart and soul of Western Australia’s electoral system - the Legislative Assembly. We saw that feigned anger. We saw the Leader of the Opposition cry crocodile tears over the impact of those policies on the electoral system in Western Australia. We know that this Leader of the Opposition does not care about rural and regional Western Australia. He has got form: he was the Minister for Energy who compromised the uniform electricity tariff and he was the minister who pushed the gold tax in this Parliament. He has so much form that his colleague the member for Ningaloo said on 27 February, after he had failed by just three votes to become the Leader of the Opposition, that “Mr Barnett was not seen to be sympathetic to country people”. They know what he thinks of the interests of country people, because they saw him in action as a minister. Further, the Western Australian people know what he stands for. I quote from an article in The Australian newspaper entitled “Premier-hopeful to dump upper House” - Deputy Liberal leader Colin Barnett wants to abolish the West Australian upper house if he succeeds Richard Court as premier after next year’s State election. That is the view of the Leader of the Opposition. Seventeen members of the Legislative Council hold regional seats. Under the plan supported by this Leader of the Opposition, 17 rural and regional representatives will be lost from our Parliament. What is more, under that plan, the House of Review, which plays a crucial role of checks and balances in our system of government, would be lost. The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
Dr GALLOP replied: We all saw the Leader of the Opposition’s performance and feigned anger in the Parliament and in the media yesterday about the consequences of establishing principle at the heart and soul of Western Australia’s electoral system - the Legislative Assembly. We saw that feigned anger. We saw the Leader of the Opposition cry crocodile tears over the impact of those policies on the electoral system in Western Australia. We know that this Leader of the Opposition does not care about rural and regional Western Australia. He has got form: he was the Minister for Energy who compromised the uniform electricity tariff and he was the minister who pushed the gold tax in this Parliament. He has so much form that his colleague the member for Ningaloo said on 27 February, after he had failed by just three votes to become the Leader of the Opposition, that “Mr Barnett was not seen to be sympathetic to country people”. They know what he thinks of the interests of country people, because they saw him in action as a minister. Further, the Western Australian people know what he stands for. I quote from an article in The Australian newspaper entitled “Premier-hopeful to dump upper House” - Deputy Liberal leader Colin Barnett wants to abolish the West Australian upper house if he succeeds Richard Court as premier after next year’s State election. That is the view of the Leader of the Opposition. Seventeen members of the Legislative Council hold regional seats. Under the plan supported by this Leader of the Opposition, 17 rural and regional representatives will be lost from our Parliament. What is more, under that plan, the House of Review, which plays a crucial role of checks and balances in our system of government, would be lost. The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
We all saw the Leader of the Opposition’s performance and feigned anger in the Parliament and in the media yesterday about the consequences of establishing principle at the heart and soul of Western Australia’s electoral system - the Legislative Assembly. We saw that feigned anger. We saw the Leader of the Opposition cry crocodile tears over the impact of those policies on the electoral system in Western Australia. We know that this Leader of the Opposition does not care about rural and regional Western Australia. He has got form: he was the Minister for Energy who compromised the uniform electricity tariff and he was the minister who pushed the gold tax in this Parliament. He has so much form that his colleague the member for Ningaloo said on 27 February, after he had failed by just three votes to become the Leader of the Opposition, that “Mr Barnett was not seen to be sympathetic to country people”. They know what he thinks of the interests of country people, because they saw him in action as a minister. Further, the Western Australian people know what he stands for. I quote from an article in The Australian newspaper entitled “Premier-hopeful to dump upper House” - Deputy Liberal leader Colin Barnett wants to abolish the West Australian upper house if he succeeds Richard Court as premier after next year’s State election. That is the view of the Leader of the Opposition. Seventeen members of the Legislative Council hold regional seats. Under the plan supported by this Leader of the Opposition, 17 rural and regional representatives will be lost from our Parliament. What is more, under that plan, the House of Review, which plays a crucial role of checks and balances in our system of government, would be lost. The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
The Labor Party supports a Legislative Council based upon proportional representation. The Labor Party also supports the right of all people, wherever they live, to equal opportunity in our State. We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
We have seen the Leader of the Opposition’s sell-out on the One Nation issue. He will have to learn the important distinction between the art of compromise in politics and the temptation of treachery. The Leader of the Opposition has fallen for the latter.
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