Mr FINCH - 1995-11-29
Mr FINCH (Health Services): Mr Speaker, last night the member for Nhulunbuy asked a question in the House regarding the Office of the Commissioner for Public Employment's annual report for 1994-95. His very trivial whinge was that he ...
Mr Stirling: You cannot read the graphs!
Mr FINCH: Yes, he could not read the graphs!
Mr Stirling: They are all black!
Mr FINCH: That is right. They are all black, but that is not the point. I will clarify it for the member in a second.
Mr Speaker, I table a letter from the member. In fact, he did not ask for an interpretation of the graphs. He asked for clear copies of pages 65 and 67.
Mr Stirling: You knew that I had ...
Mr FINCH: It was received in my office on 30 October.
Mr Bailey: What a clever little boy you are.
Mr FINCH: You are as bad as he is. I will tell you what the story was.
Within 2 days, a trainee receptionist in my office, using her initiative - and good on her, she has far more brains than the pair of you put together - faxed clear copies of the report that she had as well as pages 65 and 67. If the member for Nhulunbuy still did not understand it, he had only to pick up his taxpayer-funded telephone and say that he still could not read it, never mind understand it, and he would have obtained a solution. Before the member raised this matter last night, he had sat on it for a month. If he himself did not want to telephone, all he had to do was have his electorate officer telephone my office. Any one of 3 or 4 people would have answered the telephone, and he could have explained his problem to them.
Mr Bailey: We have only one person. That is one of the big problems.
Mr FINCH: He has had a month in which to do it. It is not exactly a matter of major moment because quite clearly what has happened is that ...
Mr Stirling: You were wounded over this.
Mr FINCH: I will table the proper report, Mr Speaker.
Mr Stirling: I am sorry I hurt you so badly.
Page 1090
Mr FINCH: Of course, it will be readable by the member, though no more digestible for him. There is his copy. All members will receive a proper copy.
Mr Stirling: Thank you, minister.
Mr FINCH: If he wants cooperation from my office and an answer on 2 days notice, he should not come back and kick my staff because that behaviour will not get him anywhere.
Mr Stirling: It was not the staff I was kicking.
Mr FINCH: You are as weak as water.
Page 1091
Mr Stirling: You cannot read the graphs!
Mr FINCH: Yes, he could not read the graphs!
Mr Stirling: They are all black!
Mr FINCH: That is right. They are all black, but that is not the point. I will clarify it for the member in a second.
Mr Speaker, I table a letter from the member. In fact, he did not ask for an interpretation of the graphs. He asked for clear copies of pages 65 and 67.
Mr Stirling: You knew that I had ...
Mr FINCH: It was received in my office on 30 October.
Mr Bailey: What a clever little boy you are.
Mr FINCH: You are as bad as he is. I will tell you what the story was.
Within 2 days, a trainee receptionist in my office, using her initiative - and good on her, she has far more brains than the pair of you put together - faxed clear copies of the report that she had as well as pages 65 and 67. If the member for Nhulunbuy still did not understand it, he had only to pick up his taxpayer-funded telephone and say that he still could not read it, never mind understand it, and he would have obtained a solution. Before the member raised this matter last night, he had sat on it for a month. If he himself did not want to telephone, all he had to do was have his electorate officer telephone my office. Any one of 3 or 4 people would have answered the telephone, and he could have explained his problem to them.
Mr Bailey: We have only one person. That is one of the big problems.
Mr FINCH: He has had a month in which to do it. It is not exactly a matter of major moment because quite clearly what has happened is that ...
Mr Stirling: You were wounded over this.
Mr FINCH: I will table the proper report, Mr Speaker.
Mr Stirling: I am sorry I hurt you so badly.
Page 1090
Mr FINCH: Of course, it will be readable by the member, though no more digestible for him. There is his copy. All members will receive a proper copy.
Mr Stirling: Thank you, minister.
Mr FINCH: If he wants cooperation from my office and an answer on 2 days notice, he should not come back and kick my staff because that behaviour will not get him anywhere.
Mr Stirling: It was not the staff I was kicking.
Mr FINCH: You are as weak as water.
Page 1091
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016