ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO THE CHAIR

Column: 1668

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO THE CHAIR:

The Deputy Leader of the House (Mr Mah Bow Tan): Mr Speaker, Sir, on behalf of hon. Members, I would like to thank you and your Deputies for chairing the Budget debate and also the Committee of Supply. We have had nine days of very extensive debate, and we have been sitting close to seven hours each day, although less in some days. This is actually one full day less than we sat last year.

But I believe that both the breadth and the depth of debate this year have not been compromised. The number of cuts this year has been more or less the same as last year. We have 363 cuts this year and 362 last year. The number of Members who spoke last year and this year is also more or less the same.

Sir, this is the second year of the Committee of Supply debate where we are following this new system. I would like to share some observations with Members.

First of all, as I said earlier, the debate has covered a lot of ground, and it has proceeded at a fairly steady clip, thanks, of course, to your firm and impartial exercise of the guillotine. There have been more opportunities for clarification and debate, although some Members' clarifications sounded suspiciously like speeches. But I feel that Members need to finetune their time management skills. For example, some Members underestimated the time that they thought that they would need, as a result of which, they rushed through their speeches at machine-gun speed and left us all far behind, or they risked the ignominy of being cut off in mid-sentence.

So, I would advise Members who make one-minute cuts or, worse still, half-a-minute cuts - and there were a few who did that - to please get straight to

Column: 1669

the point so that they do not suffer the knife. But, better still, save your time and raise your Questions for Oral Answer instead. If Members wish to develop a point, I suggest that it is best that they allow themselves a little bit more time. It is better to make a few good speeches than to make 18 incomplete ones.

I am sure, Sir, that you will be sympathetic, and that you will allow Members to finish their short speeches, even when their time is up, provided they do not drag on for too long.

On this note, Sir, may I thank you once again and, through you, your Deputies and the Parliamentary Secretariat staff, especially the Clerks, Simultaneous Interpreters, the Hansard team reporters and the Librarians, for their support, assistance and cooperation.

Mr Speaker: Thank you very much, Deputy Leader of the House.

Hon. Members, as mentioned earlier by the Deputy Leader, we have finally come to the end of the Budget debate for this year. Indeed, I have pleasure in reporting that most hon. Members seem to have mastered the art of speaking rapidly or of making concise speeches. Indeed, many MPs took less than the specified speaking times for their cuts. This year, too, we had a livelier debate, as mentioned earlier by the Deputy Leader, with more exchanges between Members and Ministers. This is a good development and something we should pursue. For this, I would like to thank and congratulate hon. Members.

Column: 1670

At the same time, let me also apologise to those Members whose speeches I have had to terminate rather unceremoniously. But then, again, a commitment to speak for a set amount of time is, surely, a promise to be kept. Besides, most hon. Members seem to have no problem with their speaking times. I cannot agree more with the Deputy Leader on the necessity for Members to sharpen their speaking skills.

Hon. Members, I have it from extremely reliable sources that this may well be the last Budget debate for this Tenth Parliament. For some of us in this House, seriously, this could also be the last Budget debate for the rest of our lives. We wish them well.

To conclude my one-minute speech, I would like to express my deep appreciation to my two Deputies, to the Leader of the House, the Government Whip and their Deputies, and to all my staff, for their assistance and guidance and for making my job a little easier. Last of all, but certainly not the least, I thank hon. Members for your presence and forbearance, and for participating in this debate. [ Applause .]