Page165 - Week 01 - Thursday, 3 December 2020
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deliver more services, and to have more opportunity to reconnect and celebrate culture and history, we will make progress together.
MR PETTERSSON: Minister, why is it so important that the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community shape and deliver the services they use?
MS STEPHEN-SMITH: I thank Mr Pettersson for the supplementary. The ACT government knows that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community-controlled organisations carry the trust of the community that they serve. They are best placed to deliver culturally specific and safe programs and services that the community will actually use. Our commitment to a vibrant and strong community-controlled sector is reflected in the ACT Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander agreement, and in the fact that the ACT was the first jurisdiction to sign the national partnership agreement on closing the gap, which put community-controlled organisations at the decision-making table on an equal footing with governments.
The ACT is fortunate to have two established community-controlled organisations in Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Services and Gugan Gulwan Youth Aboriginal Corporation. I had the opportunity to visit Winnunga on Tuesday and got a tour of its fabulous new building, which is almost complete, with its CEO, Julie Tongs OAM. I look forward to the completion of that project so that the community can get the health services they need in a purpose-built and culturally safe facility, and a facility that absolutely speaks to the respect that we have for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community. When people see it, they will be blown away by how beautiful it is in delivering self-determination for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, with Winnunga having been absolutely in charge of that process.
Work is also continuing on a new purpose-built facility for Gugan Gulwan in Wanniassa. I was pleased recently to meet with Kim Davison to discuss the progress made to date, and our ongoing commitment to collaborating with Gugan on this important piece of work. I think everyone is looking forward to the project getting underway and being completed as soon as possible. In line with our principle of self-determination, Gugan will be in the driver’s seat to shape their building to their needs. Smaller community-controlled organisations like Yeddung Mura, past recipients of grants, will also—(Time expired.)
Environment—climate action
MR BRADDOCK: My question is to the Minister for Water, Energy and Emissions Reduction. Given the urgent need for climate action, what is the government doing to phase out fossil fuel gas as quickly as possible, and can we really wait until 2045 to get to zero emissions?
MR RATTENBURY: Given the statement in the declaration of this Assembly that we are in a climate emergency, it is obviously in our interest to reduce our emissions as quickly as possible. I have always held the view that the targets that the ACT government has set have always been at the latest and, where both progress and
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