Page 1394 - Week 06 - Tuesday, 1 May 1990
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originally 13,000, then 10,000, then 9,000 from another source, and up to 20,000 - was chosen purely because it was a dramatic figure and read so much better for his circumstances than a certain number of classrooms, which is the figure that has been used in this community for 13 or more years? He picked a dramatic figure to bolster his weak arguments.
MR HUMPHRIES: The figure is dramatic because it is a large figure; 13,000 empty places in our school system is a dramatic figure, and I had no hesitation in coming forward to the people of the ACT and telling them that we had 13,500 empty places in our school system. Yes, it is a dramatic figure, and because of that I decided to put it before the people of the Territory for their consideration. That is a fair position, and I make no apology for that.
The figure is not changing, Mr Wood. It stands at 13,500, although if subsequent censuses of our school system reduce or increase that figure, both of which possibilities present themselves, of course I will come back to this house and say what the new figure might be.
Domestic Violence Crisis Refuge
MRS NOLAN: My question is directed to Ms Follett as chairman of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. I refer her to a report in last Friday's Canberra Times, criticising the Alliance Government for not advancing the funds of $142,000 to build a second women's domestic violence crisis refuge in the ACT.
In view of the comments made by the Attorney-General in the Assembly on 26 April 1990, will Ms Follett undertake to have her committee investigate whether a sum of $142,000 was set aside in the budget, as she has claimed? Will she confirm that this was for a part year only and has a full-year effect of $238,000? If so, will she investigate why those funds were not separately appropriated in the Appropriation Bill and advise how the former Government's budget process allowed nearly the entire additional SAAP funding, which is required for urgent ongoing grants in the area of youth homelessness and other support, to be allocated to a domestic violence crisis refuge under the guise of a separate appropriation?
MS FOLLETT: The answer is yes.
Preschools
MR WOOD: I direct to the Minister for Health, Education and the Arts a question concerning preschools. Does his consideration of clustering of preschools, lumping them in one big heap, now mean that he expects families with young
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