Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

In preparing for my entry to parliament, between the election and when parliament started I read the biography of the Hon. James Killen, who was a former member for Moreton and a great orator. I read with great enthusiasm a lot of the exchanges in the cut and thrust of parliament, but the legislation before us now is not something that would generate much of that sort of banter. I have been a native title adviser, a mines adviser and a health adviser, and I have worked in industrial law and commercial law, and I would have to say, with respect to the Attorney-General, that this is one of the most boring pieces of legislation I have ever encountered. But for the fact of its contribution to fairness in terms of gender neutral language, it probably would obtain that title.

The Statute Law Revision Bill 2008 runs the ruler over the Commonwealth legislation to improve its quality and accuracy. It is part of the continual process of review that ensures our Commonwealth laws are up to date and reflect the highest standards. Prior to coming into parliament, I spent 11 years as an English teacher and about 10 years as a lawyer. Obviously standards, words and accuracy are very important for an English teacher and also for a lawyer, and I had a look at the make-up of the House of Representatives and the Senate to see how many other people had been teachers or lawyers. There are about 21 teachers, 13 female and eight male; and there are 48 former barristers, solicitors or lawyers, 35 male and 13 female. So obviously the people in this House do spend a lot of time focusing their minds on being accurate.

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