Page 4130 - Week 12 - Thursday, 1 December 2022
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That is exactly what we are doing through the new planning system. By doing this, we are leading the nation. Canberra is a rapidly growing city, and we need to consider where people will live, work and recreate now and into the future.
The planning reforms build on Canberra’s future, too. Those draft district strategies set out a city that is well connected and sustainable. For the first time we are mapping our city across several different metrics, including employment opportunities. This is done through marking out areas under economic access for equity. We are thinking about current and future employment as we build Canberra’s future, and the district strategies are nation leading.
MS CLAY: Minister, would the government consider delivering more of Canberra’s new housing stock closer to existing and future employment centres, in line with the IPCC’s recommendations?
MR GENTLEMAN: We work across government to ensure that we can provide housing as close as possible to work and transport corridors. We learnt this through our interactions with young people back in 2018, when I first did the statement of planning intent workshops across the ACT. Young people said to us that they were happy to live in a denser city, as long as they were close to employment, close to good transport corridors and close to good urban open space.
MR BRADDOCK: Minister, how will the new Territory Plan and district strategies encourage more employment in those areas that have low employment to population ratios, like Gungahlin?
MR GENTLEMAN: That is a good question, Mr Braddock. Of course, we have been looking particularly at Gungahlin, and the challenge there, where we have not seen the big employment opportunities from the federal government that we see in other parts of the city. The district strategies look at that. We want to hear from Canberrans as to where they would like to see changes in their areas for both employment and housing.
Canberra Hospital—Adult Mental Health Unit
MR COCKS: My question is to the Minister for Mental Health. Minister, last week you said categorically that you were unaware of any safety concerns for patients and staff at the Adult Mental Health Unit. Yesterday you confirmed that you had inquired about safety issues regarding the Adult Mental Health Unit when briefed on problems at Dhulwa. Yesterday you also resolutely refused, despite the Speaker’s direction, to answer a question on your awareness of incidents at the Adult Mental Health Unit and whether you had subsequently inquired about safety concerns. Minister, this question is purely, and to the exclusion of all other matters, about your statements and your awareness of safety issues. Given that there were 170 incidents, why didn’t you know?
MS DAVIDSON: Thank you for the question. Given that our mental health services are working with people in their care whose behaviour can sometimes include some things that are quite risky or harmful for themselves or others, there is a constant need for awareness of staff around the risks involved and being able to assess those risks
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