Page 109 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 14 February 1990
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schools and parents give a high priority to that life saving skill of knowing how to swim. The Labor Government gave it that same high priority. It came to office when there had been vague proposals, and Mr Whalan lifted them out and was proceeding rapidly to see that a pool was to be located in Tuggeranong. What the Labor Party would ask is that the Government give the swimming pool in Tuggeranong the same priority that we gave to it.
Mr Collaery: We are following your timetable.
MR WOOD: No. You have taken steps backwards since you came in.
Mr Kaine: Not so.
MR WOOD: Let me stress the importance of a swimming pool. It may seem strange to some that this Assembly spends so much time, and there is so much publicity out there, about a swimming pool. There is so much media comment in the Tuggeranong area.
Mr Kaine: Stirred up by Mr Whalan.
MR WOOD: But it is important. Canberra has a remarkably large number of swimming places around the city. In the Cotter, the Molonglo, the Murrumbidgee there are a great number of swimming spots. There are numbers of drownings. Not only that, but in many instances there are a large number of pools still not adequately fenced. So there is the opportunity for young people to swim, if they can, and with that there is the opportunity for young people to drown. Therefore, it is important that strategically scattered across Canberra there are swimming pools to which young people have ready access for their learn to swim campaigns.
Let me quote you the figures which will tell us how important it is for Tuggeranong rapidly to get a swimming pool. At the July census of schools last year there were 5,772 primary school children in Tuggeranong and 4,273 in Woden and Weston Creek, with 2,339 at Tuggeranong high schools and 2,112 at Woden and Weston high schools. Just by comparing those two areas you will see the greater number of children in Tuggeranong and yet there are two swimming pools, I think, available to people in the Woden and Weston Creek area. So those children are denied that facility. The Erindale pool, at one end of Tuggeranong, is well patronised. In fact, it is over-patronised at critical times for students. There may be times at weekends - I do not know, I do not frequent that pool - and other times where it is not so well patronised, but at the times when students need it they cannot get into it as readily as they would like.
Kambah High School, for example, would like to run annual classes for their years 7 and 8 children in order to teach them basic water safety, but they cannot even run an
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