Page 661 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 21 March 1990
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has been exposed as a disaster because it does not apply to public hospitals which are the most significant producers of clinical waste in the Territory.
Let us also remember that Mr Duby said last December that Mr Kaine would deliver confidence and stability to this Territory. Mr Duby, the record is clear again. Within 100 days of self-government the Labor Party had detailed a complete budget statement outlining all of our new initiatives, and our budget adopted a balanced approach addressing both revenue measures and modest expenditure savings. It was a basis for consultation and planning. It was a document which delivered predictability, confidence and stability for the Territory.
But what do we have from this Chief Minister? It is a series of evermore confused statements about budget cuts, about privatisation and sacking of staff. Mr Kaine's pronouncements show that he has no grasp whatsoever of public sector finances. One day he says that he will cut expenditure by $100m, and the next day he says that this is impossible. His economic statement next week, by his own confession, confirmed at question time today, will not include any detail as to where these cuts will occur. So we will have even more confusion for the community. It will be a budget that is based on bluster, an ideological statement in which the only fact will be Mr Kaine restating his intention to slash public employment and services to the community.
It is clear that in attempting to implement these cuts nothing is sacred. That statement has been made by members opposite. It was only because Mrs Grassby exposed Mr Collaery's plans that he cancelled his meeting with developers about the sale of the Northbourne Flats. Contrary to his claims, it was the Government which started the confusion over public housing stock. In December Mr Kaine said that he would sell off a third of the public housing stock, and at first Mr Collaery endorsed that statement. Ever since he has been backtracking, and obfuscating and muddying the waters on the issue, but he was finally trounced by Mrs Grassby, and he cannot stand it. The fact remains that this Government has demonstrated that it is prepared to sell valuable community assets for a very temporary budget fix. It has no plan for the long-term fiscal problems of this Territory.
I admit that it is difficult to criticise this Government on the basis of its achievements because there are none to criticise. Even its announcements of what it intends to do are difficult to pin down. Every statement is followed by a qualification and a backdown. It is very difficult to hit a dodging, weaving and evasive target.
But let us look at the Government's self-promotion, the so-called record of achievement. The Chief Minister claims to have "developed an integrated set of planning laws". But he has not produced it. Where is it? We have had a third
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