Speaker of the House of Assembly Stanley Lowe announced yesterday that he has tossed out Opposition questions from the previous Parliamentary session.

And the Premier was quick to welcome his decision to quash what he branded "time-wasting" questions related to Government travel among other matters.

Mr. Lowe said that issues raised previously to the end of the last session last December would not be given a forum.

"From a Parliamentary perspective, we have conceded to the fact that this is a new Parliament and as such, all matters, proceedings etc. which were pending prior to the prorogation of Parliament on May 9, are quashed," he said. "In that vein, Ministers will not be required or obligated to respond to the questions put on Ministerial travel prior to December 20, 2007."

And in the same press release, Premier Ewart Brown said the decision should free the house for "substantive" debate.

"The floor of the House is where substantive debate is supposed to occur," Premier Ewart Brown said in a press release from the Department of Communication and Information sent on Monday night. "It is an outright rejection by the Speaker of the Opposition's time-wasting questions about travel and the like."

See tomorrow's Royal Gazette for full coverage