QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
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ELECTRICITY INDUSTRY PRIVATISATION
Mr COLLINS: My question without notice is addressed to the Premier. Did Bob Hogg, the Labor mate he commissioned to look into the privatisation of electricity, say "there’s no absolute certainties" that electricity prices will fall for consumers following privatisation? Will the Premier give a steadfast guarantee, perhaps signed in blood, that consumer prices will fall and jobs will be protected as a result of the power privatisation that he has now decided to embrace?
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I place the honourable member for Ermington on three calls to order.
Mr CARR: Opposition members have had 10 long weeks to sharpen their pens for this day and to line up the grand inquisitor to put the Government on the spot.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order.
Mr CARR: Yet all we get at the first question time, after 10 long weeks -
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the Leader of the Opposition and the honourable member for Georges River to order.
Mr CARR: I am reminded of what this cry-baby had to say about electricity privatisation in the week the House last met. Honourable members may have forgotten that on that occasion he said, "What will the Premier do about the power blackouts caused by electricity unions going on strike?" That was back in June. We were headed for power blackouts. The Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party laughs. During the parliamentary recess of three long months, he only came into the news presenting a cheque for $900 to sign up bogus Liberal Party members.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the honourable member for Hurstville to order.
Mr CARR: What a terrible thing branch stacking is! What a sad thing to happen to any great party! The only time in the three-month parliamentary recess that he touched a financial issue was a $900 cheque to sign up branch members. But what a model his leader sets because in the 10 weeks that the Parliament was not sitting, the Leader of the Opposition issued a grand total of precisely six press releases. We looked for them in the Parliamentary Library. The Library has a little file showing that in the entire time the Parliament was in recess the Leader of the Opposition released only six statements. I guess it is a reflection on how competently my Government is handling all the great issues of state, including electricity.
Mr Photios: On a point of order. The Leader of the Opposition asked a very specific question about privatisation of electricity. Difficult though it may be for the Premier, he did not answer the question, is not answering the question and should be drawn back to the question.
Mr SPEAKER: No point of order is involved.