20 February 2007

What have I done! Cries Stefaniak

| johnboy
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The ABC has a story on the hurt and upset in the Legislative Assembly as it dawns on them that Bill Stefaniak’s doomed no confidence motion is going to suspecd the assembly for seven days under the Commonwealth’s Self Government Act.

The original thinking when the Act was written was that no populace would ever be so stupid as to vote in a majority government (they reckoned not with Brendan Smyth’s “dead fish” electioneering, the collapse of the democrats, and the loopy Osbourne group scaring everyone’s pants off). So the idea was that when no confidence was moved everyone could take a breather and crunch some serious numbers, and offer some serious deals to the independents and minor parties.

As with all impediements to his untrammelled power the Chief Minister now thinks it’s “an absolute nonsense and needs to be removed”

Big Bill is with him on this as it would let him move no confidence day and night without ever having any consequences to his actions.

UPDATED: As Louise pointed out in the comments the Canberra Times has noted that the seven day shutdown is in the standing orders and not the self-government act.

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Actually there isn’t any choice about the timing. The standing orders require that a no confidence motion takes precedence over all other business of the Assembly. That means if such a motion is moved no other Assembly business can take place until it is resolved. Thus if the Self Govt act requires seven days notice before the motion can be debated and the standing orders prohibit any business until the motion is debated the Assembly has to shut up shop for seven days. There is no room to manouevre and the Assembly Secretariat know their stuff.

The Canberra Times reported on this today. The reporter pointed out the 7-day suspension is Assembly standing order. The self-govt. act itself doesn’t require any suspension, just 7 days notice.

Do you reckon any of them have worked it out yet? More to the point, it’s a bit of a worry that none of them knew their own rules partiuclarly well.

Ingeegoodbee8:26 pm 19 Feb 07

If Big Bill was smart enough he would call a no confidence motion every seven days – say for a couple of months – at least until a point when the Commonwealth felt it necessary to step in a sack Stanhope and his pathetic wankfest of shit-bags and call a election

Well in current circumstances I’d rather see that anyway. And more blood, the better.

They can stop the liberals ever moving no confidence motions but they’d need a history of vexatious motions before the public would go for that.

It’s actually designed to protect governments from being felled in a rush of blood in the assembly.

Surely, there must be a getout clause somewhere.

Or else there’s stufff that actually does need to be done by the assembly, and the libs aren’t quite prepared to cut off that much of their nose to spite their face…

Just an afterthought, but why not move a no-confidence motion every week until Stanhope gets the message? It would get ’em all on the tele.

On the other hand, it means a week goes by without the ALP inflicting more damage on the electorate. Just ask Tharwa school.

The Assembly is but a formality these days.

well, you know, it gets them all on the tele.

James-T-Kirk2:38 pm 19 Feb 07

Oh – Did I say “Loosing team”?

I ment opposition….

Oh – that’s right – They lost didn’t they!

James-T-Kirk2:38 pm 19 Feb 07

Ha Ha…

That is *very* *very* funny…

If I was back in high school, and there was a ruling like that, we would simply vote no confidence at the start of the week, and spend the rest of the week down at the plaza…

Mwahaaaaaaaaaaaa.

bloody stupid govmit… Bloody stupid pollies – Who would bother trying to pass a motion as the loosing team anyway – Looks like a political stunt to me!

an absolute nonsense and needs to be removed

Agree Jon, the ACT is an absolute nonsense and needs to be removed.

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