Chief Minister Katy Gallagher has comfortably survived a no-confidence motion against her in the Legislative Assembly today.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
The motion was brought by Canberra Liberals Leader Zed Seselja over Ms Gallagher’s performance in the health portfolio in the wake of the “data doctoring” scandal at Canberra Hospital.
But Labor’s power sharing partners, the ACT Greens, used their balance of power position to help Labor defeat the motion by 11 votes to six after three hours of sometimes acrimonious debate in the chamber.
The Assembly will now try to work through all its outstanding business in before adjourning on Friday, or in the early hours of Saturday morning, for the last time before October’s territory election.
"It was about the data scandal and the fact that it was allowed to happen," Mr Seselja said after the vote.
"We believe Ministers should be accountable when there are such systemic and serious failings.
"It was also about the Chief Minister’s failure to be open and upfront in relation to her personal connections to the individual."
If you missed the debate, you can catch-up here:
12:55PM: Right, so. This lot are all off to their press conferences to put their own spin on things and your correspondent is away down to emergency to have his wrists looked at and his data doctored, hopefully. Thanks everyone for tuning in and check the site for updates about more of this evening's late sessions.
12:51PM: The vote is put, the nays have it, 11 to six, ALP, Greens against the Liberals. A division is called just to prolong the magic and Katy Gallagher survives a not-particularly-near death experience. As political theatre, it wasn't exactly Beckett, but we had fun.
12:50PM: Ah, a personal explanation from Caroline Le Couteur. What Jeremy said was not right, to cut a short story even shorter.
12:49PM: The Greens are endorsing a data scandal, apparently.
12:47PM: "Those facts about the relationship sounded worse for her so she chose cover-up instead of disclosure," Zed says. If Gallagher went for full disclosure on day one he says, not unreasonably, she would get more respect in this community.
12:45PM: Maybe we were wrong, Zed muses, and maybe it was, in fact, Simon Corbell doing the undermining of Katy Gallagher and not Andrew Barr after all. Kevin Rudd looks like he's in the clear though.
12:42PM: If this was a Liberal Chief Minister, the Greens would be voting in support of it. "Does anyone doubt it?" Zed asks. Now an interesting question would be be if any meetings were held or even sought between these two outfits; they've had a whole week, after all.
12:40PM: That was a turn uncharacteristically short on laughs by Alistair. Zed on his feet to close. Looks like we might get a vote soon. Wonder what will happen. No, wait.
12:38PM: "She has betrayed the people she represents by not following proper government arrangements," Alistair says. "This scandal is indicative of a health system that has been let down by its minister."
12:36PM: Ross Solly referenced again. He's gonna want an appearance fee for this. Dead set.
12:34PM: And here comes Alistair Coe: "We have a health system that has gone from one of the best performing in the country to one of the worst." You've heard it before from these boys, you'll hear it again.
12:32PM: "Nothing will be done because the Greens have signed a blank cheque to support this government," Steve says. The world just won't listen, eh Dozzy?
12:31PM: "This is a serious systemic failure by a minister who doesn't seem to care," Steve says.
12:29PM: Now the Greens are guilty of "obstruction of justice," the old Parliamentary Privilege is being given a fair old workout here today. Great fun.
12:27PM: There's a "whole army" of people involved in data tampering at the Canberra Hospital, Steve reckons. Flippin' heck Steve, why didn't you mention this before??
12:24PM: Back after some more technicals and there you are, Steve Dozpot, we thought we'd lost you for a while there. Anyway, Steve is lambasting the Greens for "rank hypocrisy" for supporting Katy Gallagher and all her bad ways. The Greens also "condoned" the Greenpeace attack on GM crops in Canberra. Careful, Steve, we heard a bloke got in all sorts of trouble on that job.
12:15PM: Meredith basically call Jeremy a liar, saying Caroline Le Couteur said nothing of the sort claimed by "Hard Man Hanson" earlier. According to the Greens leader, Caroline said that the question of confidence would be decided by the electorate in October. "She said nothing like what Mr Hanson said this morning," Meredith reckons. Then she has a crack at Zed over his "hissy fit" about the debate a couple of weeks ago.
12:12PM: Meredith is "gobsmacked" by Brendan's Smyth's "honour" crack. So it's not just us. Accuses Brendan of a "Fountain Lakes performance". Not bad, that one.
12:10PM: Alright, that's enough out of you for now, Simon. Meredith Hunter adding her tuppence worth now and that's four Libs (we think) on warnings from the Chair. Looks a bit lopsided.
12:09PM: Now we're back on Kate and Simon says that far from being an innocent bystander done over by her public servants as claimed several times this morning, that Kate was up to, um, there in the whole thing. We thought we were here to talk about Katy Gallagher. Shane Rattenbury, back in the Speaker's Chair, warns his nemesis Jeremy Hanson for repeated interjections.
12:03PM: "It wasn't this government who blew up a hospital, resulting in the tragic death of a young Canberra woman," Simon says. We'll leave it to yourselves to decide if that's a step too far. Kate Carnell will probably say yes. Simon now banging on about Labor achievements in health.
12:01PM: The auditor-general found that Katy Gallagher was not "directly or indirectly" involved in data tampering, Simon says.
12:00PM: High noon and the sting has gone right out of this thing. This lot think they're going to sit into the early hours in the next three nights. Looks like they're feeling the pace already.
11:58AM: "The Chief Minister has been clear about the relationship between the member of her family and the officer responsible for altering the data." Um, I think most of us missed that bit, Simon.
11:56AM: Katy Gallagher's "record is so bad that this Assembly must say that she can no longer be Chief Minister in this term," Vicki finishes. Simon Corbell up next.
11:54AM: OK, slight technical hassle resolves. Vicki has had a few pretty bad emergency room horror stories and reckons that people with cystic fibrosis in Canberra are treated "appallingly".
11:48AM: This is interesting, the rehabilitation of Kate Jackson marches on from Vicki. The argument is that Kate did the right thing, fessed up and "fell and her sword," and that Katy Gallagher should do the same. Perhaps Canberran of the Year for Kate is not an impossible dream after all.
11:46AM: "Organisations go bad because of bad leadership," Vicki insists, and it all started with Jon Stanhope. But not the bits that Zed was quoting earlier, presumably.
11:43AM: "Maybe the only person with any honour in this is the officer who did the tampering," Brendan concludes. You what?
Anyway, that's Brendan done and Vicki Dunne is on her feet. She's on the "10 year war in obstetrics" and the "toxic culture"
11:40AM: On an observational note, Brendan seems incapable of making a public statement without declaring that he's been talking to people down at the shops. Must be years worth of groceries at Brendan's house.
11:39AM: Smyth most unhappy, understandably, with the privacy-obsessed Health Directorate distributing Kate Jackson's name to the media. That one's not going away in a hurry either.
11:37AM: "Fish rot from the head and this government is rotting from the head and this Chief Minister must go," Brendan thunders.
11:35AM: Now Meredith Hunter is in strife with Brendan over a "lack of leadership." He says that the Greens supported the Chief Minister even before reading Zed Seselja's motion of no confidence.
11:33AM: "Shame on you," Andrew Barr for comparing the spraypainting of the grass with the doctoring of 11,000 patient records, Brendan says. Andrew spraypainted the grass at Floriade, adds Brendan.
11:31AM: Hmmmm, we're not really getting much from Brendan that we didn't get from Zed and Jeremy. Although the accusations of Andrew Barr undermining Gallagher to the media behind the scenes are interesting.
11:28AM: Caroline Le Couteur just fronted up. Brendan Smyth on his feet now and quoting Ross again, alleging that there is "unease" in the Labor party over Gallagher's handling of the the data scandal. I think we're all uneasy about that, Brendan.
11:26AM: Ah that walk-in clinic gaffe again. Gotta tell you sports fans, both sides getting a few good hits in this morning.
11:24AM: Now it's the Libs' record in opposition. That $10,000 they claimed from the poor and the needy fund just ain't going away. Tio-gate is invoked too.
11:23AM: Andrew's now onto his favourite tack (of late) of tying Zed to Tony Abbott. He also reckons they're like the Tea Party.
11:22AM: Brendan Smyth warned for repeated interjections. Vicki Dunne too.
11:21AM: You get the impression that Labor, so far, are taking the chance to get a few things off their chests and are finding it more fun they they thought.
11:19AM: Andrew reckons that some "strategic genius" in the Liberal Party took the decision to trot Kate Carnell out this morning. Not sure if that's actually how it happened, Andrew.
11:15AM: Right, now we're getting somewhere. Zed's been told to stop heckling, he says that Simon Corbell had a crack during his own speech. It seems that even after all these years, the spraypainting the grass saga (see the history books) is still a very sore point.
11:13AM: Right, Jeremy's done (officially). Andrew Barr onto his feet: This is gutter politics, a stunt, the Canberra Liberals stands for nothing rah rah rah. Andrew's obviously been given the responsibility for the rough stuff this morning. And Kate Carnell's record is invoked again. "Hopeless, scandal prone," Andrew reckons. Someone's going to have to give Kate a call at this rate.
11:11AM: "A gross error of judgment," by Gallagher in not making full disclosure of her relationship with Kate Jackson. Got a point there, Jeremy. Johnno Hargreaves, reverting to the habits of a lifetime, getting his interjections on.
11:10AM: "The whole organisation at a senior level is focused on performance," says Jeremy. A scandal! " It's seen as a political imperative." The second bit heaps better than the first bit, Jeremy. FYI.
11:08AM: "A decade of decline under ACT Labor," the Liberals' health man declares.
11:06AM: The Canberra Times finally gets a mention. Cheers Jezza, we were starting to feel a little bit taken for granted there. And after all we've done for you.
11:05AM: Jeremy is now rattling off a roll-call of the "human faces" of ACT Health stuff-ups. There's a few in there, in fairness.
11:02AM: Jeremy has to withdraw the words "perpetuating a lie", and chooses to replace them with being "untruthful".
11:00AM: Katy Gallager has established a bullying culture in ACT Health, Jeremy says.
10:58AM: Jeremy's on his hind legs now, he reckons he's been smeared by the Chief Minister, the Greens are in lockstep with the government for political reasons and Caroline Le Couteur, who is not here for some reason, admitted to him that the Greens couldn't afford to change a Chief Minister so close to the election.
10:56AM: "This motion is a political stunt and the Greens will not be supporting it," Amanda says. Right then, glad we cleared that up.
10:54AM: As the head of a national mental health organisation, Kate Carnell should know better than making personal attacks, Amanda says. That woman again. If we keep going like this, Kate will end this game with most touches on ground.
10:53AM: We've got to stop focusing on indicators like waiting times, Amanda says. Again.
10:51AM: Oh, poor old Jeremy's copping it again, this time Amanda reckons he has no "comprehension of the damage he does when he runs down our health services."
10:47AM: Right, that's Katy done, now the Greens' Amanda Bresnan is on her feet, sounding a bit hoarse, like a trip to the ear nose and throat section might be in order.
10:43AM: Now we're onto shenanigans in Zed's office "the only thing he has to administer". Jeremy shouting again.
10:41AM: Jeremy is shouting across the chamber now after Gallagher points out that he only has one health policy: closing the nurse-led walk-in centres. Jeremy never likes it when people say that.
10:40AM: "Low infection rates, low re-admission rates," she says. Maybe Katy, but that's not terribly sexy.
10:39AM: "Canberrans have much to be proud of in their health system," she reckons.
10:37AM: Wow, the Chief Minister is still rattling off all the stuff her party has done on health. A bit of heckling starting to fire up on the opposition benches now.
10:35AM: Now she's attacking the Libs' record on health in office. Closing beds and blowing up hospitals. Who'd have thought that Kate Carnell would be so newsy again? This morning is going great.
10:33AM: Liberals' claims "indecent and simply dishonourable," she says.
10:32AM: Liberals are lazy, Gallagher says.
10:30AM: "The one thing I underestimated was the nastiness of the Canberra Liberals," particularly Jeremy Hanson, Katy reckons. She says her sister has been hassled in her Canberra Hospital workplace.
10:29AM: The investigations into data-tampering found "no wrongdoing on my part, none," she reckons.
10:27AM: Katy Gallagher on her feet to respond: "This motion is beneath the contempt of this place," she reckons.
10:27AM: "This Chief Minister must go," Zed concludes.
10:23AM: Zed is saying that Katy Gallagher's trespasses are a lot more serious than those of Kate Carnell, who was bundled from office by the prospect of a successful no-confidence motion. Kate's real sin, of course, was not controlling the numbers in the Assembly. In that respect, Gallagher is in the clear, as we'll see later.
10:21AM: Now he's quoting Jon Stanhope, himself a savage for no-confidence motions when in opposition. "The irony is not lost on me," Zed says. Nor on us.
10:20AM: "We only move these type of motions in the most serious of circumstances," he says.
10:18AM: "The media aren't buying it," Zed reckons. And now he's quoting John Hargreaves. We just knew it would be worth turning up today.
10:17AM: Zed's quoting Ross Solly now. Take a bow Ross.
10:16AM: "Katy Gallagher twisted and turned and changed hers story," Zed says.
10:13AM: Now, we're onto the data doctoring: "the biggest systemic deception in the territory's history," Zed says, and it wasn't just one rogue staffer.
10:12AM: Zed says he has been viciously attacked by the Chief Minister for trying to highlight failings in the health system. Tough profession you chose for yourself Zed.
10:08AM: Now, for those tuning in late, like we did because of some technical problems, Zed Seselja and his Canberra Liberals are flying a motion of no confidence against Chief Minister Katy Gallagher alleging mismanagement of the ACT's health system. It's the first no-confidence motion during this Assembly, that is for four years. Might well be an election in the air.
10:07AM: "This health system has been shattered by this minister," Zed reckons.
10.03AM: "Bullying so bad and cronyism so rife," in the Emergency Department, Zed Quotes unnamed nurse.
10:00AM: Zed's off and running, alleging fraud, deceit and other bad stuff at the highest levels of the ACT Government. That's a parliamentary privilege job, BTW.
