Page 1345 - Week 05 - Thursday, 26 April 1990
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MR STEFANIAK, by leave: Like my colleagues, I also reiterate what has been said to date about our departed colleague, Mr Paul Whalan. Hopefully he will not be departed for a long, long time, because not only has he offered much to this Assembly but I am sure he has a lot to offer for many years to come to the ACT community. We might not always have agreed with a lot of what has occurred in this chamber or with a lot of policies taken by the Follett Government or with some of the tactics adopted by the former Government now in opposition, but I think it would be churlish not to say a bit about some of the great achievements of Mr Whalan for Canberra and for this Assembly in its short 11 months' history. I will not go into the points raised by Mr Humphries, although I certainly endorse his comments and those of the Chief Minister concerning Mr Whalan's great role in the formulation of self-government in the Australian Capital Territory.
Whilst there were a number of initiatives taken by the Follett Government that we would not necessarily agree with, I think there are some other great achievements Mr Whalan, particularly, can take a lot of credit for. In his 11 months, and especially in his seven months as the Deputy Chief Minister, he made a genuine attempt to foster private development and investment in the Australian Capital Territory. With money as tight as it is and with the difficulties we are experiencing with the Federal Government, this is the only way to go. Canberra will have to become more and more reliant upon the private sector, and, to his very great credit, Paul Whalan did a lot to ensure that that occurred in his seven months as Deputy Chief Minister.
Mr Humphries has spoken of his lasting achievement of self-government for the ACT, and although a number of other people were involved in that he certainly can take a lot of credit for it. There are some other things though which I think Mr Whalan can take credit for. Although perhaps it was not his initial idea, as some other members of his party and some other individuals in the Canberra community first floated this one, Mr Whalan can take a lot of credit for providing the ACT with one of the truly first-class international football stadiums in the world - the Bruce Stadium. Now, I know we had a few arguments last year as to whether we should or should not have the athletics track there, but be that as it may. Alternative arrangements were made there, and what we have is a magnificent facility. Although the concept might have been there before, because of Paul Whalan's efforts it is now a reality and I think we are starting to reap the benefit of this magnificent facility.
During my time assisting the Deputy Chief Minister in the sporting area I have spoken to many people. I have also spoken to many people in opposition. Although there are some points Mr Whalan and I might disagree on in the sports area, I would also like to pay tribute to him for his seven
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