Mr BAILEY - 1996-10-17
Yesterday, the Deputy Chief Minister told the Assembly that Enterprise Gold had no titles in the Territory and holds only a miner's right. However, Enterprise Gold says that it held mining interests in the Territory until March this year. During that time, he was also the Minister for Mines and Energy. Every ministerial decision that he made that affected the mining industry also affected the company in which he had shares. In what way, therefore, is his conflict of interest situation any different to that of Senator Short and Senator Gibson? Will he take their course of action and resign or does he have lower standards?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I welcome the member for Wanguri back to the gutter because that is precisely where he is grovelling ...
Mr Bailey: That is where you are coming from.
Mr Bell interjecting.
Mr REED: The member for MacDonnell predictably interjects. I would think that Territorians listening to this broadcast today will be hoping that we may debate matters in the House that are of importance to Territorians, matters of interest to them and that is ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: Mr Speaker, I said yesterday in this House that my understanding is that any leases that Enterprise Gold had in the Territory have been relinquished by it.
Ms Martin: You receive shareholders reports each year.
Mr REED: Oh, you are back! The member for Fannie Bay also interjects. She thinks she is still on ABC radio. She may have been listening to ABC radio this morning when a former colleague of members opposite - the former member for Millner, Mr Parish - gave his view that he could not possibly understand how I could be seen to have a conflict of interest because of shares that I held. It must be borne in mind that the company has been in liquidation and the shares that I hold are worthless. I cannot get rid of them. In fact, yesterday, I even offered them to James Baker who is in the press gallery. I told him that he could have them for nothing if he wanted them. He did not want them. He did not accept my kind offer. The only value ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
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Mr REED: People listening to the broadcast will want to hear the facts without me having to shout them over the rude interjections of members opposite.
Mr Bell: How many shares in Enterprise Gold has ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: You do not want to hear the answer, do you? All you want to do is muckrake.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I advise the minister that he should be addressing his comments through the Chair. I ask members opposite not to interject continually with further questions.
Mr Bell: He is being very provocative.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: Thank you, Mr Speaker. People listening to this broadcast want to know the facts. The facts about the 1500 or so shares that I had in Enterprise Gold are as follows. In March or April 1994, I think, the company went into liquidation and it was delisted on the stock exchange. I spoke to the company's secretary yesterday, as did a couple of people from the media in Darwin. He did not name those media representatives, but he said that he had received a few calls about this matter. I asked him whether I continued to be a shareholder, and the obvious answer to that was that I do because the company has been delisted only. I asked him how I might divest myself of these shares, or possibly sell them. He said: You do not seem to appreciate that they are absolutely worthless. You cannot get rid of them. All you have is a piece of paper which is of no value, and which you probably could not even give away'. He said that I should understand that the shares I hold in Enterprise Gold are in a
company that has been delisted and that has liabilities of $44.4m or something of that order.
If the most important thing that members of the Labor Party in this Chamber have to do today on behalf of Territorians is to crawl back into the gutter and slime around there, I am sure ...
Mr Bailey: No code of conduct. That is what it is. No standards.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: You interject again. A large number of people from Darwin to Alice Springs listen to the broadcast of Question Time and I am sure that they will be horrified to find that, again today, the biggest interest that members of the Labor Party in the Assembly have today is to wriggle around in the gutter. They do not care about jobs for Territorians. They do not care about development and they have no interest in the wellbeing of Territorians. The assertions that the member for Wanguri makes belong, I believe, where he has just come from - the gutter.
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I welcome the member for Wanguri back to the gutter because that is precisely where he is grovelling ...
Mr Bailey: That is where you are coming from.
Mr Bell interjecting.
Mr REED: The member for MacDonnell predictably interjects. I would think that Territorians listening to this broadcast today will be hoping that we may debate matters in the House that are of importance to Territorians, matters of interest to them and that is ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: Mr Speaker, I said yesterday in this House that my understanding is that any leases that Enterprise Gold had in the Territory have been relinquished by it.
Ms Martin: You receive shareholders reports each year.
Mr REED: Oh, you are back! The member for Fannie Bay also interjects. She thinks she is still on ABC radio. She may have been listening to ABC radio this morning when a former colleague of members opposite - the former member for Millner, Mr Parish - gave his view that he could not possibly understand how I could be seen to have a conflict of interest because of shares that I held. It must be borne in mind that the company has been in liquidation and the shares that I hold are worthless. I cannot get rid of them. In fact, yesterday, I even offered them to James Baker who is in the press gallery. I told him that he could have them for nothing if he wanted them. He did not want them. He did not accept my kind offer. The only value ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
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Mr REED: People listening to the broadcast will want to hear the facts without me having to shout them over the rude interjections of members opposite.
Mr Bell: How many shares in Enterprise Gold has ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: You do not want to hear the answer, do you? All you want to do is muckrake.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I advise the minister that he should be addressing his comments through the Chair. I ask members opposite not to interject continually with further questions.
Mr Bell: He is being very provocative.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: Thank you, Mr Speaker. People listening to this broadcast want to know the facts. The facts about the 1500 or so shares that I had in Enterprise Gold are as follows. In March or April 1994, I think, the company went into liquidation and it was delisted on the stock exchange. I spoke to the company's secretary yesterday, as did a couple of people from the media in Darwin. He did not name those media representatives, but he said that he had received a few calls about this matter. I asked him whether I continued to be a shareholder, and the obvious answer to that was that I do because the company has been delisted only. I asked him how I might divest myself of these shares, or possibly sell them. He said: You do not seem to appreciate that they are absolutely worthless. You cannot get rid of them. All you have is a piece of paper which is of no value, and which you probably could not even give away'. He said that I should understand that the shares I hold in Enterprise Gold are in a
company that has been delisted and that has liabilities of $44.4m or something of that order.
If the most important thing that members of the Labor Party in this Chamber have to do today on behalf of Territorians is to crawl back into the gutter and slime around there, I am sure ...
Mr Bailey: No code of conduct. That is what it is. No standards.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr REED: You interject again. A large number of people from Darwin to Alice Springs listen to the broadcast of Question Time and I am sure that they will be horrified to find that, again today, the biggest interest that members of the Labor Party in the Assembly have today is to wriggle around in the gutter. They do not care about jobs for Territorians. They do not care about development and they have no interest in the wellbeing of Territorians. The assertions that the member for Wanguri makes belong, I believe, where he has just come from - the gutter.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016