Mr Schultz - were you really absent for the "Apology"?

I have this afternoon sent an urgent email to Mr Alby Schultz, MP, Member for Hume.
It reads as follows:

Dear Mr Schultz

As a constituent of yours, (from Robertson), I would be grateful if you could confirm the accuracy of a report on the Sydney Morning Herald website today (Wednesday), by Annabel Crabb that you were absent from the House during the speeches by the Prime Minister and your own party Leader, Dr Nelson, relating to the "Apology". If that is not correct you might wish to correct the record.

Ms Crabb's Article is entitled: Ancient tensions fail to mar apology.

The link to this story is here:

It says:

• "Wilson Tuckey arrived early, shouted the Lord's Prayer with his colleagues, then disappeared. Liberal colleagues Alby Schultz, Don Randall and Sophie Mirabella were absent for the apology."

I don't care how loudly Mr Tuckey responded to the Lord's Prayer, but I do care about your absence.

If this report is true, then I am totally dismayed, indeed disgusted. There are surely few matters of business more pressing than the first item of business on the first day of normal Parliamentary Sessions. And this sitting day has been scheduled for some considerable time.

I am forwarding this email to Ms Gash, Senator Heffernan and to Ms Pru Goward, Member for Goulburn in the NSW Legislative Assembly. I have also copied it privately to a number of my friends who are all your constituents, in the newly redistributed seat of Hume. In the past, we have been well served by the Member for Gilmore, Ms Joanna Gash. Even though some of us might have had various differences of opinion with Ms Gash - at least she never failed to represent us in Parliament.

I would hate to think that our level of representation has plummeted so dramatically, on the first regular sitting day, that you have discovered other things which are more important than being in Parliament for Item 1 on the business paper, for the first regular sitting day of the new session of Parliament.

I wonder if you would like to comment, please?

For the sake of completing the record, I would intend to copy your reply to the original distribution - so everybody knows what the real situation is regarding your reported absence from the House of Representatives chamber this morning.

Yours sincerely.

Denis Wilson

Wednesday 13 February 20084:53 PM

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Denis Wilson

PO Box 158 Robertson NSW 2577

Missingham Pde, Robertson NSW 2577

Enrolled voter in the Electorate of Hume, and in the NSW seat of Goulburn.

peonyden@bigpond.com

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Distribution:

Ms Jo Gash MP

Senator Heffernan

Ms Pru Goward, MLA