Page 3557 - Week 12 - Thursday, 19 September 1991
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
Mr Moore: Did you register the Birthday Party?
MR DUBY: No, but I will leave you to register the Disappointed Party. How does that sound? Where was I? As I was saying, this budget does nothing to address the issues that are facing the Territory at this time. I thought it would be appropriate, in making this address on the budget, to go back and look at some of the things that have been said in the past, particularly by Ms Follett. Frankly, the statements that have already been made by Mr Kaine and Mr Collaery, I think, go to the absolute nub of the problem.
There are some particular points which I would like to ask the Government to explain because I think they stand out like a sore thumb. One issue which particularly concerns me is that of tourism funding. I notice that last year, out of the Consolidated Fund, there was an estimated expenditure - I imagine that that was the amount actually spent - of some $4.65m.
I notice that the Minister for tourism, who is also the Treasurer, of course, is not here at the moment. A very interesting figure comes out in the 1991-92 budget estimates in that the grant to the Tourism Commission this year has been reduced from $4.65m to $4.04m, and on top of that the Tourism Commission is being asked, or being instructed, to pay, for the first time, its rent of $1.1m. So, we have its funding cut from $4.6m down to, in effect, about $2.9m.
That is a remarkable cut in this budget. Everyone mouths off and says that everyone here in this Assembly is supposed to support tourism because it is a method of providing employment, et cetera, and economic activity in the Territory; but it is clear that there is not much incentive placed by the current Government on tourism in the Territory when it can have such a dramatic cut in its funding. I note today that a tourism commissioner has announced his resignation, and I think I know why. The reason is, of course, that he, in all conscience, cannot stay as a commissioner on a commission which does not have the support of the Government.
As I said, there were some interesting points made by Ms Follett in her speech of 13 December 1990 when she addressed the Appropriation Bill, or last year's budget. It is funny how words come to haunt you. She there bemoaned the fact that Canberrans will be paying through higher taxes and poorer services. Well, nothing could better describe this current budget. She went on to say that that was a budget from a lazy government, a government that was too lazy to make the hard decisions. What we are seeing today is also an example.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .