Page 3038 - Week 10 - Friday, 8 October 2021
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promises to improve our hospitals. Inadequate investment in our health system costs lives.
The Canberra Liberals have raised concerns about crumbling infrastructure and overcrowding in our schools for years, and this budget does nothing to address the serious concern of hazardous materials in our schools. This budget does nothing to address the serious concern of overcrowding in our schools, especially in the inner north. Instead, the bulk of the school infrastructure budget is to be spent on expanding Margaret Hendry School, a school that was opened just two years ago! This is a stunning admission of failure on the part of this government to properly plan for our growing school population.
The ACT Council of Social Service has raised concerns that the pandemic has exacerbated the poverty, the inequality and the disadvantage that already exist under this government. Earlier this week, I called for a full review of the targeted assistance strategy to make sure that the right support is going to those who need it.
The Canberra Liberals have fought for years for our public housing stock to be brought up to a livable standard. Unbelievably, this government has dismissed our calls to bring our public housing stock to meet the minimum safety standards. The pandemic and the forced lockdowns of some of our most vulnerable Canberrans in houses that are just not fit for quarantine has forced this government to commit $80 million to maintenance. But we know that this is, once again, a bandaid fix, a catch-up, to try and patch up the shocking neglect of public housing stock under this government’s watch.
We must provide hope and certainty for our businesses, who have faced a challenging 18 months, and many still face an uncertain future—businesses that cannot see what the next few weeks will look like for them, let alone next year.
The next 12 months will be an extremely crucial and challenging time for our community, and the decisions that this government makes over the next 12 months will determine how we recover from the biggest health and economic challenge we have ever faced. We are a strong, resilient community and I believe we can get our economy back on track with the right priorities and leadership.
First, we must back our local businesses, to boost confidence, innovation, skills and jobs through and beyond the pandemic. Unfortunately, there are Canberra businesses that will not survive this lockdown. When we lose these businesses, we do not just lose a business; we lose the spirit of entrepreneurship, of vision and of everything that represents the blood, sweat and tears that go into establishing every small and local business. We lose the heart and soul that goes into starting and growing every small and local business. Our businesses need support now. We need a plan to back our businesses, to support them through and beyond the pandemic.
The Canberra Liberals have been listening to our local business community, and I call on this ACT Labor-Greens government to back our businesses through this challenging time. We must show trust by giving all businesses the opportunity to create COVID-safe plans, which will allow them greater freedoms to recommence
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