Page 2157 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 6 June 1990
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you can guarantee the affordability of the new centre, then the community groups, the Opposition and the entire Canberra community may find it acceptable.
MR HUMPHRIES (Minister for Health, Education and the Arts) (11.51): I think we ought to take stock of some of the things that have happened in respect of the Griffin Centre over the last few weeks and see just how much foundation the Opposition has for this kind of motion. It is obvious that the motion was put on the notice paper some time before yesterday's announcement. Notwithstanding what Mr Connolly has said about being prepared to acknowledge the good deeds of the Government in that respect, it is not true that the Opposition has generally appreciated how significant the decision announced by the Government yesterday really was. It is obvious that Mr Berry in particular and the Opposition in general have been gazumped by the actions of the Government yesterday. The reassurance we have been able to offer to the community in general and to the users of the Griffin Centre in particular has been well received. (Quorum formed)
It is obvious that those opposite really do not want to hear this debate go through. They are more interested in scoring a few quick, cheap points and then getting onto some other bit of damage and havoc. I think they must be severely embarrassed at the moment, particularly given our very strong and positive position on the Griffin Centre as a result of yesterday's announcement.
It is obvious that the Opposition Labor Party runs on fear at the moment. It draws its strength from the fear and anxiety it generates in the community concerning the sorts of things that it has been saying about the Government's actions. It is prepared to characterise every change in the ACT's position as some downgrading of this or threat to that or destruction of this or whatever. We need to be asking ourselves at what point an opposition ceases to be responsible in these circumstances. My view is that they ceased being responsible quite some while ago. I think the community well and truly accepts that the Griffin Centre is, in its present form, an inferior vehicle for offering services to a whole range of important community groups.
I myself have often used the Griffin Centre both to meet with organisations and groups housed there and to hold meetings and functions with people in that centre or to attend other activities there. It is quite plain to me that the centre is pretty decrepit. It is not a high-quality centre. It has a severe shortage of space. Its facilities are run-down. I do not think anybody could gain particular pleasure from being cooped up in the tiny, ill-lit, ill-ventilated spaces that pass for community accommodation in the Griffin Centre. I think it is very responsible of the Government to be talking about upgrading and improving the quality of the accommodation being offered in that centre; that is exactly what the Government is doing. What do we get from the Opposition? Criticism.
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