Page 1086 - Week 06 - Thursday, 27 July 1989
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not materially change the forward estimates for 1989-90, which are themselves merely an extrapolation by the ACT Treasury of last year's figures.
Clearly, the application of political judgments and priorities has not materially changed them. I am certain that there would be other political initiatives that the Government would have wished to undertake but did not because the natural inertia of existing programs of work and subsequent budgets made it too difficult.
Perhaps it was not its wish to initiate real change. Whatever the reason, I do not see any likelihood of real change to the budget resulting from any input from the community. Again, one must question whether the Government is conducting this community consultation exercise purely as a publicity exercise and whether it has any serious intention of changing its budget in response to public demand.
Mr Speaker, in summary, this draft budget is a steady-as-she-goes budget when all the circumstances call for innovation, change and political courage. It is a draft budget which purports to be a base susceptible to change by community consultation processes when the Government itself has not initiated any change. The possibility of community initiated change is close to zero without a political will, which the Government has not demonstrated.
It is a budget that will fail the test of community consultation because it lacks the full details which the community will require to enable it to participate. It is a budget that reflects a series of broken electoral promises made to individual taxpayers and ratepayers. It is a budget that demonstrates the Government's lack of concern for some sections of the community, such as those living in their family homes on fixed incomes and those striving to buy their own homes - specifically, Mr Speaker, those in this community who are attempting to stand on their own feet.
In fairness to the Government, however, it is a budget that indicates that the Government is becoming aware of the financial reality of the ACT, even if it has not as yet confronted the real issues. These real issues will not go away. They will be there waiting next year and the year after, and must eventually be confronted. Their magnitude may well be greater then than now. As time goes by, as the issues are avoided rather than confronted, the landing of the Government and the community is going to become progressively harder. That warm feeling that people have today will cool off, and the Government will receive no credit for deferring the hard decisions.
I have highlighted the problems and deficiencies in the draft budget paper as I see them, Mr Speaker, in the spirit of consultation, upon the Government's invitation. The point is that these documents are only draft
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