Mr BAYLEY question to MINISTER for BUSINESS, INDUSTRY and RESOURCES, Mr ABETZ
The parliament was told that we would be getting a bill to approve a permit for a stadium. Instead, we have got a bill that approves a half-designed stadium. It grants you unchecked authority to personally amend any permit, and it gives you and your secretary the vast majority of enforcement responsibility. This is a bill to approve the notion of a stadium with power to you to fill in the blanks and to make the changes as you like. Why should MPs and MLCs rubber stamp you appointing yourself as proponent, planning authority and regulator?
ANSWER
Let us completely debunk the nonsense of the Deputy Leader of the Greens. Should I be clothed with any powers? They will not be powers I would be giving myself; they would be the powers bestowed upon me by this parliament. Let us get that absolutely clear.
Mr Bayley – In your own bill.
Dr Woodruff – In your government’s bill.
The SPEAKER – Members of the Greens.
Mr ABETZ – This is just one of the many falsehoods peddled by the Greens in their manic opposition to this transformative multipurpose stadium that we want to see as the gateway to our capital city. The stadium will be important for cultural events, sporting events, international conferences; it is something that will be a great economic fillip to our economy, providing well-paid jobs and security for many of our fellow Tasmanians.
Can I debunk this nonsense that somehow, I appoint myself with authority? No, that is wrong. It will be the parliament that will determine what powers, if any, I am given. After that, the legislation requires me to consult in the event of seeking to issue a permit, and that consultation will take place.
The legislation also requires, if I recall correctly, that I need to act in good faith and ultimately, be answerable to this parliament, the Chamber of the people. That is how our democracy works, so do not try to say that somehow, I can magically clothe myself with an authority. That is simply not correct.
What I will be doing, if the parliament gives me certain powers, is seeking to exercise those powers to the very best of my ability, for the benefit of the people of Tasmania, so that they can have this transformative stadium which will be such an important economic fillip, and of course, enable us to have an AFL and an AFLW team in the big league. We can then genuinely be part of the AFL.
Can I say how delighted I was to learn that we now have 210,000 foundation members of our Tassie Devils team, which indicates that, despite all the negativity from the Greens, the membership is still growing. That is what I look forward to: having a stadium on the waterfront. The Deputy Leader of the Greens can continue with his negativity.
The SPEAKER – The minister’s time for answering the question has expired.
SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION
Mr BAYLEY – A supplementary question, Speaker?
The SPEAKER – I will hear the supplementary question.
Mr BAYLEY – It is clear that the minister thinks that attack is the best form of defence. He acknowledged that the bill gives him some pretty remarkable powers and said that he needs to consult and act in good faith. In fact, I do not think the bill does say anywhere that you need to act in good faith, and the question was – as acknowledged upfront – why should MPs and MLCs rubberstamp you appointing yourself as proponent, planning authority and regulator?
The SPEAKER – The member’s time for asking the supplementary has expired. I am not going to allow it. I believe it was answered in the opening statements by the minister.
