Page 3243 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 10 November 2021
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which I will not be giving. However, the matters as they pertain to the future operations of those pools, some of which are government-opened assets and managed under contract for the government and others are private assets, have a very different set of arrangements. But there should be no expectation that the government will be bailing out private sector operators.
MR MILLIGAN: Why was there no continued funding for Civic pool beyond 2020-21?
MR BARR: There are certainly elements of funding that are year by year based upon the trading circumstances and the asset condition of Civic pool. Those are reviewed annually.
MRS JONES: After the toughest winter for many Canberra families when people would like to go the pool, why can’t the government get Phillip Swimming Pool to open, fund Civic pool and repair and reopen Gungahlin’s largest pool?
MR BARR: Phillip pool is a privately owned asset. The owner has indicated that any repair work necessary could not be completed before the end of summer anyway, regardless of the funding source. The issues in relation to tiles at Gungahlin pool have been well canvassed. The government procurement process has selected a tenderer to repair the tiles at Gungahlin pool, but COVID travel restrictions have set that back in terms of the time frame. I observe, of course, that the changes I announced yesterday allow for increased capacity across the rest of the territory’s pools, and the territory has recently opened a brand new world-class facility at Stromlo.
National Multicultural Festival—COVID-19
MS CLAY: My question is to the Minister for Multicultural Affairs. I asked about Summernats and other major events coming up in 2022 at a public COVID committee hearing on 1 November. The Chief Health Officer told us that festival guidelines were under development to help events proceed, and that the spoken advice would be available to major events to assist them to comply. Will the Multicultural Festival be held in 2022 on this basis?
MS CHEYNE: I, also, was asked questions on this by Mr Pettersson during the estimates hearings, and I will refer members to my comments then. But to reflect on them and to reflect on comments that the Chief Minister has made, going forward we are working through our calendar of events. We have a big calendar of events, usually, and we are working with the Chief Health Officer at the moment on how we can deliver events safely and effectively.
MS CLAY: Have the Multicultural Festival event organisers been provided with bespoke advice?
MS CHEYNE: As I mentioned, we are working through this with the Chief Health Officer. I appreciate that many community organisations are looking for certainty in the lead-up to the very special and very treasured festival—it will be the 25th
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