Fed: Govt rejects ALP criticism on parliamentary timetable

AAP General News (Australia)
12-11-2001
Fed: Govt rejects ALP criticism on parliamentary timetable

CANBERRA, Dec 11 AAP - The federal government today denied its parliamentary sitting
timetable for next year, which begins with just four weeks in the first four months, is
light-on.

The timetable, released yesterday, sees parliament return for business on February
12 but politicians will only have to sit in the chamber for a month until the May Budget.

Opposition Senate leader John Faulkner today said many people would see the sitting
timetable as not ensuring value for money.

"The government has proposed a parliamentary sittings timetable with only 19 sitting
weeks," Senator Faulkner told ABC radio.

"So I think some might argue they're not getting value for money from that point of view.

"It's fairly light-on and I think it does emphasise the fact that there's a real lack
of a third-term agenda with the third Howard government."

But government Leader of the House Tony Abbott said Labor was just trying to peddle
a silly story.

"This is an absolutely stock-standard parliamentary year," Mr Abbott told ABC radio.

"It's really six of one and a half of a dozen of another and I think this is the kind
of let's-get-into-the-silly-season story that you'd expect the Labor party to be promoting.

"It's opposition for opposition's sake and they have hardly learned any of the lessons
of losing a third election on the trot."

AAP lm/rs g

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