Page 2257 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 4 August 2021
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ESA cross-border arrangements in response to natural hazards—Ministerial statement, 4 August 2021.
I move:
That the Assembly take note of the paper.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Planning—Woden town centre
Ministerial statement
MR STEEL (Murrumbidgee—Minister for Skills, Minister for Transport and City Services and Special Minister of State) (10.35): I am pleased to provide an update to the Assembly on the new CIT campus in Woden, along with the new public transport interchange and associated infrastructure works. It is exciting to see the integrated CIT Woden campus and Woden interchange project kicking up a gear, with significant work getting underway on construction of the first package and further consultation as design progresses on the other packages of work.
The project comprises four packages in total. The first package delivers new bus layovers and supporting road and intersection upgrades, with the second package of work providing an improved and expanded transport interchange on Callam Street that is futureproofed to welcome light rail. Package three will deliver the new CIT campus itself, with 22,500 square metres of educational and community facilities hosting smart classrooms, state-of-the-art simulated learning environments, commercial kitchens and hands-on training spaces. The fourth package of works will deliver new culturally appropriate facilities for Yurauna, CIT’s dedicated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander educational centre of excellence; and this will be delivered on CIT’s Bruce campus, contributing to the renewal of that campus in the process.
Stepping back for a moment, the coming years are going to be critical for the ACT’s vocational education and training sector, of which CIT is an integral part. The combination of the negotiation of a national skills agreement, the impact of COVID-19 on our workforce and the related skills shortages have put a spotlight on the sector. As a government, our priorities are to ensure that the ACT VET system is responsive to the needs of industry and learners and provides quality training and outcomes no matter where or what people choose to study. These objectives have long been features of VET in the ACT, but there is an urgency now to strengthen our system to meet the challenges ahead.
We know that many businesses in the ACT are experiencing difficulties attracting skilled staff, particularly in the construction, digital, health and community sectors. There are many reasons why these skills shortages exist, but the training system must be at the forefront in ensuring that Canberrans have the skills needed to drive the prosperity of our economy and deliver high-quality services to our community.
We have lots of work underway to tackle this including: preparing to roll out a second round of the very successful JobTrainer initiative; working through the new Skills
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