House debates
Tuesday, 20 March 2007
Questions to the Speaker
Speakers’ Rulings
5:13 pm
Don Randall (Canning, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, I have a question of you in relation to the conventions and processes of the House, to see if they were contravened on the last day of parliament before we got up a fortnight ago. Just to put it in context, I was critical of previous Speaker Neil Andrew and communicated that to him. He told me that, unless I withdrew it, he would name me. In the same vein he dealt with the member for Dunkley. He actually suspended him from the House for an hour for being critical of him.
After the last sitting fortnight, the opposition leader went outside this House and on TV said that he could not raise issues in this House because he felt that you had lost control of this House and he felt that you were not applying the rules fairly in this House.
As a result, I ask you, Mr Speaker: are you going to take action to deal with that criticism so as to conform with previous rulings by previous speakers, or are you going to allow the opposition leader to get away with the slur that he made on you outside this House?
David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
The member will resume his seat. I am aware of the matter that the member for Canning has referred to. I did read a transcript on that carefully. I believe on balance that the point he raises is not one that I would take further action on.