Resumed from an earlier stage of the sitting.
Recommittal Committee
The Deputy Chair of Committees (Hon Martin Aldridge) in the chair; Hon Stephen Dawson (Minister for Environment) in charge of the bill.
(Comments and speeches from various members)
Bill again reported, with a further amendment, and the report adopted.
Third Reading
HON STEPHEN DAWSON (Mining and Pastoral — Minister for Environment) [5.19 pm]: I move — That the bill be now read a third time.
HON ALISON XAMON (North Metropolitan) [5.20 pm]: I want to make a quick comment about the passage of the Prisons Amendment Bill 2020. In the course of the Minister for Environment’s second reading speech in reply, in response to my proposal to have this bill moved to the Standing Committee on Legislation for further deliberation, the comment was made that I had blindsided the government with that motion. I wanted to correct the record on that. I had previously advised the government that I fully intended to move the motion to have the bill considered by the legislation committee. It was unfortunate that because of the very constrained time frames that we were given to consider this bill that apparently that information, although clearly given and spoken about, was not relayed to the minister in charge of the carriage of the bill in this house. Therefore, I wanted to set the record straight on that, because, as members would know, I am somebody in this place who attempts to always ensure that people are given sufficient notice of what my intentions are in relation to any bill, and my intentions on how to intend to take carriage of the bill on behalf of the Greens. One of the things that I know that I do not do is engage in behaviour that could ever be construed as “blindsiding” anybody, but particularly the government of the day. It was very unfortunate, I think, that I was mischaracterised in that way because it is certainly not what happened, although I absolutely accept that, for whatever reason, the minister who had been given responsibility for the carriage of this bill had not had that vital bit of information relayed. I still maintain that it would have been important to take a bill of this substance to the legislation committee and have it subjected to further scrutiny, and as I reflected at the time, that was certainly the desire of those members of the community who had raised concerns with me. Nevertheless, that was not the will of the house, but I certainly wanted to correct the record in relation to the way that I had moved that referral.
Question put and passed.
Bill read a third time and returned to the Assembly with amendments.