Members

SPEAKER, ELECTION

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (11:02): It is now necessary to proceed to the election of a Speaker. I move:

That the member for Croydon take the chair of the house as Speaker.

The CLERK: Does the member for Croydon accept the nomination?

The Hon. M.J. ATKINSON (Croydon) (11:02): I accept the nomination.

The CLERK: Is the nomination seconded?

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (11:02): Yes, Mr Clerk; I am happy to second that nomination.

The CLERK: Are there any further nominations? There being no further nominations, I declare the member for Croydon duly elected Speaker.

The Hon. M.J. Atkinson was escorted to the dais by the mover and the seconder of the motion.

The SPEAKER (11:02): In compliance with the standing orders and in accordance with the traditions of parliament I humbly submit myself to the will of the house. I offer my thanks to the mover and the seconder, and I come to this new vocation with the same reluctance as the seconder comes to his.

Confidence in the fairness of the Speaker contributes to the successful working of parliament and the timely dispatch of business. I shall protect members' rights, those of the house and of individuals. The majority may get the decision but the minority will have its rights. I hope we can increase the number of opposition and Independent MPs' questions without notice and reach a firm understanding about the privileges of the media in the precincts that takes account of changes in technology and members' need for reasonable privacy. I have a Red Army stopwatch with me, which I bought on the Charles Bridge in Prague as the Soviets were withdrawing from Czechoslovakia, which will help me—

An honourable member interjecting:

The SPEAKER: —no, not quite—limit ministers' answers to four minutes.

The Hon. J.D. Hill: Four minutes of Russian time?

The SPEAKER: No. I thank the house for the honour of being its Speaker. I hope not to finish my term in the manner of Speaker William Catesby, Speaker Peter Slipper and other martyred occupants of the office. Do honourable members wish to make any remarks?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (11:05): Thank you, Mr Speaker. Before offering my congratulations to you, Mr Speaker, I also offer my congratulations for the role which was performed by the previous Speaker, Ms Lyn Breuer, the member for Giles. I pay particular tribute not only to the way in which she used her role to exercise a leadership function for the women of South Australia but also to the important role she played in making this house a welcoming place for Aboriginal people, as she discharged her functions.

I congratulate the new Speaker of the house. He, of course, is the father of the house, so it is proper that he assumes the role of keeping good order amongst his family, which amounts to the balance of the chamber. We know, of course, that he has a deserved reputation for sartorial splendour, which, no doubt, will be reflected in the way in which he deports himself in this house; that will be an adornment to this chamber.

He also, of course, brings a particular flair for grammar. I assume that the way in which he conducts the business of the house will also be to remind all of us that we should be on our best behaviour in relation to the English language.

Mr Speaker, you, of course, will be fair. You will uphold the standards of this house, the dignity of this chamber. You have also indicated that you will seek to make this truly a house which is a people's house, where people can come to see the proceedings of the parliament and, in different ways, follow and contribute to the public debate which should be the stock in trade of this chamber. I congratulate you, and I wish you all the best on your high office.

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (11:07): I also echo the remarks of the Premier in thanking the former Speaker, the Hon. Lyn Breuer, for her contribution to the parliament and for her role as the Speaker of this house. We enjoyed our working relationship with her, and we thank her for her service and wish her the best in her future parliamentary career. Mr Speaker, we welcome your opening remarks today and your commitment to impartiality in the chair. We look forward to the colour and flair which I think will ensue, and we wish you all the very best. Congratulations. We look forward to working with you.

The SPEAKER: Thank you.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health and Ageing, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (11:08): I rise, first, to thank the member for Giles for her contribution as Speaker. I congratulate you, Mr Speaker, on your ascension to high office. There are, I think, three of us in this chamber who have had the honour of being Speaker in previous parliaments. It is a grave responsibility and a very high office, to which I think you are well suited.

I well remember, Mr Speaker, that, when I was first elected, you said that one of the first things a new member had to learn was how to conduct tours of Parliament House for his constituents and that I should accompany you when you did one. I learnt an enormous amount, of which I was not then aware, not only of the history of this place—the history of this building—which goes back 150-odd years but, more importantly, the traditions of this place, which go back 1,000 years. I recognise the enormous respect you have for the institution of the parliament, and I am sure that you will do a great deal to uphold the traditions and the dignity of this place.

Mr VENNING (Schubert) (11:09): I firstly congratulate you on your appointment and look forward to how your unique style will be reflected through the chair. It will be indeed interesting. I also congratulate and pay tribute to the Hon. Lyn Breuer. She is a friend of most of us in this house, and I, like most of us, was pretty sad to see what happened and how she was removed from the position, or asked to stand aside, which she did graciously. She brought a new personage to the position in relation to how she conveyed the business, and she certainly never lost the style that she was elected with. She was straightforward and a very good spokesperson.

The reason given, through the media, for the change of speakership was that the Premier said that he wanted to see the way this house operated changed. Can I remind the Premier and you too, sir, that there is a Standing Orders Committee. We did meet under the previous Speaker, Lyn Breuer, we did make recommendations, and we were told at the time that the government was not interested. Sir, I hope that you will realise that there is a Standing Orders Committee, that you will use it and that you will listen to it. I wish you all the best in your office.

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (11:11): I first of all congratulate you on being elevated to the high office of Speaker and also pay tribute to the fine work that was done in the chair by the member for Giles. I thought she brought a human touch to the parliament, and that was appreciated by us all. I would just reinforce the comment by the member for Schubert: I would like to see you, sir, as Speaker really drive some reforms in this parliament. I think we lag behind most other parliaments in Australia in terms of the way in which we operate, and I would like to see you be the catalyst for reform in regard to standing orders and the processes of this parliament. I think that would be a great legacy if you could help bring it about.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (11:11): I inform the house that his Excellency the Governor will be prepared to receive the house for the purpose of presenting the Speaker at 1pm today.