Tuesday, 16 November 2021

Government performance

Ms CROZIER (Southern Metropolitan) (13:03): We have heard what those opposite think about the whole process of the Public Health and Wellbeing Amendment (Pandemic Management) Bill 2021. Mr Leane just interjected a few moments ago across the chamber, ‘Line up with the lynch mob’, pointing to the people outside. What a disgrace—what a damn disgrace. And what a disgrace the Premier was here—

Mr Leane interjected.

Ms CROZIER: You did so, and do not say you did not. You did so. And the Premier today on radio: all signs of somebody—

Members interjecting.

Ms CROZIER: Oh, you are going to defend yourself now?

Mr Leane: On a point of order, President, it was relative to a woman out there just 10 minutes ago with a microphone calling for Daniel Andrews to hang on the end of a rope, and all the crowd cheered. The point of order is: if Ms Crozier wants to associate herself with that, then she can feel free.

The PRESIDENT: There is no point of order.

Ms CROZIER: That is what is wrong with this government. That is what this government is so arrogant about. It is you in front of IBAC with your corrupt behaviour, with the disgraceful display of rorting taxpayers money—the tens of thousands of taxpayers in the street.

Mr Leane: On a point of order, President, Ms Crozier has been here a long time. She knows if she is going to make an accusation against another member of Parliament she has to do that by a substantive motion. She pointed at me and said ‘you’. If she is going to make that sort of accusation against a member of Parliament, it has to be done by a substantive motion. It cannot be done during an angry 90-second statement.

Ms CROZIER: It was a collective ‘you’—the government, the Andrews government. ‘Those over there’, I said—the government. ‘You’ as in the government, President, not Mr Leane. ‘You’ as in the government being the corrupt ones in front of IBAC.

Dr Cumming: On a point of order, President, this is a members statement. This is not a debate; this is not a motion. I do not understand why—

Members interjecting.

The PRESIDENT: Order! I get your point: it is a members statement. The minister had the right to raise a point of order, and Ms Crozier already clarified the issue.

Ms CROZIER: Thank you, President. Again I say: the Premier’s arrogant dismissal of legitimate concerns and the disingenuous attempts to frame the opposition as being anti-science and not truly caring about Victorians show a man who is truly consumed by power and who will do anything to avoid scrutiny and accountability. He is a man who is absolutely taking this state for granted, for the people who are raising legitimate concerns. He is so consumed by his own hallmarks of being a megalomaniac in terms of what he is trying to do here—as is Mr Leane and everybody else who is trying to paint anyone who opposes what the government is putting forward—and his commentary just demonstrates— (Time expired)

The PRESIDENT: While we are on this subject, members are interjecting, but we invite members to interject and at the same time we invite them to raise points of order, and a point of order follows another point of order.