Tuesday, 4 March 2025

Southern Metropolitan Region

David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (13:06): I want to ask a question of the Minister for the Suburban Rail Loop in this important point on constituency questions. The maps that have been released in recent days are horrifying to many in the community. They show ugly, dense development, massive towers 80 metres tall – and I do not think that is the end of it for many of these either – windswept and desolate areas, inadequate parkland in these areas –

A member interjected.

David DAVIS: Well, we know you love Hong Kong. You pointed to Hong Kong being –

Sonja Terpstra: On a point of order, President, Mr Davis is aggressively pointing, and I would ask that he not aggressively point when he is asking his question.

David DAVIS: On the point of order, President, I should not have been pointing, but I was responding to a fractious interjection.

The PRESIDENT: Let me rule on this. I uphold the point of order. Pointing across the chamber is not appropriate in the house.

Nick McGowan: On the same point of order, President, having just raised that point of order, the member opposite then proceeded to point at member Crozier in a similar fashion – in exactly the same fashion as the member is saying that member Davis did.

The PRESIDENT: I think we can all agree that no-one should be pointing in the chamber. It is a precedent that has been set.

David DAVIS: My question for the minister is: will she go back to the drawing board and reform these shocking documents and make sure that there is proper parkland in there? And picking up the interjection earlier from the member opposite, she actually advocated for Hong Kong as a model.

Sonja Terpstra interjected.

David DAVIS: You did so in this chamber, and the transcript shows that. And that is what is being delivered. We are getting dense, ugly outcomes.

The PRESIDENT: Mr Davis, your time has expired.

Michael Galea: On a point of order, President, Mr Davis is misrepresenting remarks that Ms Terpstra made, and she at no point referenced Hong Kong.

Members interjecting.

Sonja Terpstra: You’re a liar.

David Davis: No, I’m not.

Renee Heath: Further to the point of order, Ms Terpstra is reflecting on the character of an individual member, which is outside –

Members interjecting.

Renee Heath: You know what you said.

The PRESIDENT: It is going to be endless.

Nick McGowan: On the point of order, President, it is a long-held custom in this place that members do not call one another liars. The member opposite has repeatedly called Mr Davis such. I am not going to repeat it. I would ask the member to withdraw.

Wendy Lovell interjected.

The PRESIDENT: Taking up the Deputy President’s contribution from where she sits, I think that we went to a point where it was all a bit unparliamentary. I think Mr Davis is finished, and we can move on.