Page 284 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 31 May 1989
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I would never seek to belittle those attractions. They are wonderful institutions; we are blessed to have them in our Territory. But it must be acknowledged that they were all established during the halcyon days of the Australian economy. If members care to have a look at the kinds of projects that might be considered tourist attractions in the ACT that the Federal Government has had under consideration in more recent times, they will see that there has not been a great deal of activity. I refer in particular to the National Museum of Australia. The Act for that museum was passed in 1980. There has been little activity since that time, although there is a visitors centre. The museum has not had any funds for acquisitions for some years.
We are faced in the ACT, as indeed we are nationally, with a situation where there is no national museum of history, no comprehensive display of Aboriginal history and culture, of environment issues or of any aspect of Australia's place in the world. I think that that is a situation that must not be allowed to continue, and I am very happy to note the support of the Assembly for the Museum of Australia project.
The other project, of course, that points out the Federal Government's perhaps lessening of interest in the ACT as a tourist attraction is the old Parliament House. We welcomed yesterday the announcement by the Federal Minister, Mr West, that the old Parliament House would become a museum of political history and would serve some other community purposes. It is all in keeping with the institution and all very worthwhile. That museum will provide an additional tourist attraction in the ACT, but I am sure members are aware that Mr West also announced that there would be no resources committed to the restoration of the old Parliament House, to the creation of that new museum of political history, for at least a year. This is not the first year of delay that we have seen on that project, and I think that other members might share my slight scepticism that we will indeed see resources committed in 1990-91. I will believe it when I see it, quite frankly.
The point I am getting at is that we have tended to coast on Federal Government initiatives for our tourism industry in the ACT and, now that we have our own Government and are a self-governing Territory, it is only right and appropriate that we should seek to take a much firmer grip on our own tourist industry. The initiatives that have been outlined by Mr Whalan are a very valuable step towards fostering and improving the tourism industry in the ACT. I am very pleased that all members apparently support those initiatives and I look forward to some further enthusiastic debate on tourism issues.
There has been, in my opinion, rather an overemphasis on the importance of the casino to tourism in the ACT. I
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