Page 3066 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 10 September 1991
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on the schools issue. At all times we said that we would reopen the two controversial schools. Within days of this Labor Government coming into office it made good, under the stewardship of the Education Minister, on that very specific promise.
In relation to the hospitals, the Labor position had long been clear. In our policy document, when we went to the electors in 1989, the Labor Party said that it wanted to retain the hospital on the Acton Peninsula. I think in that respect that all parties in this Assembly had a similar policy; but when the Alliance Government came into power the Liberals and the Residents Rally decided to go about a different course of action. Labor, on coming to power, very much would have liked to be in a position to reverse the decision on the Royal Canberra Hospital. The Health Minister took the view that it was essential that we have a clear and objective analysis of the options and the position, and to that effect gave approval to a very short and sharp consultancy analysis on options for the future of the health system. That review, which took but a few short weeks, confirmed the worst. In effect, it confirmed that, yes, as Mr Moore says, it would be possible to maintain a hospital on the Acton Peninsula. It would be possible to pull down the Telecom tower on Black Mountain, which many Canberrans 15 years ago opposed.
Mr Kaine: It is not yours to do, I am afraid. You would if you could, I'll bet.
MR CONNOLLY: It would be possible, but it would be vastly expensive. Indeed, as Mr Kaine says, that would not be ours to do, but a Federal government could do that. There are a lot of things which a government coming into power would like to do to reverse the decisions of a former government but which are just not responsible while possible.
A similar example of the havoc wreaked on the community sector by the Alliance Government as a direct consequence of the school closure program was the decision to give the Independent Living Centre the flick from its then location in Macquarie and to move it into the Weston Creek Community Centre. We very vehemently criticised that. We said that it was unnecessary. Of course, with the Labor Government coming good on its clear commitment in relation to schools, it would have been possible for the Independent Living Centre to have remained at Macquarie. I came under a significant degree of pressure from the Weston Creek community to reverse that decision of Mr Humphries and send the Independent Living Centre back to Macquarie and use the space at the Weston Creek Community Centre for alternative purposes, but that would have been irresponsible.
The former Government made a decision which we thought was the wrong decision. It resulted in a significant expenditure of public funds and it would have been irresponsible of us as an incoming government to reverse
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