Page 3601 - Week 12 - Thursday, 19 September 1991
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Bruce Stadium - Lease by Canberra Raiders
MR STEFANIAK (6.10): In relation to the point Mr Collaery made regarding that particular question and the answer from the Chief Minister which related to the $1m still owing to the Territory in relation to the Bruce Stadium, I listened with interest to both his question and Ms Follett's reply. I think her reply probably did not do justice to what I regarded, when I worked with Mr Collaery as his Executive Deputy, as some very good work that he did in that area. I believe in giving credit where credit is due. That is why I congratulated Mr Connolly on increasing those speeding fines. I would certainly congratulate Mr Collaery on the very fine work he did in relation to what was an absolutely atrocious contract entered into by the ACT Government on 24 June 1989.
That contract was drawn up, I believe, not even by legal people but, I think, by a firm of accountants. It gave a very favourable deal - in my opinion, probably too favourable - to the Raiders in relation to the Bruce Stadium. It was not a crash-hot document, to say the least. Mr Collaery and the Government legal advisers, and I think perhaps all parties for about the last 10 months or so - I hope that the Labor Government is continuing in this regard - have tried to arrive at a proper and sensible legal agreement.
The premier team using the Bruce Stadium, no-one would doubt, is indeed the Canberra Raiders. They have done an incredible amount for Canberra in the short time they have carried this city's flag in the New South Wales rugby league competition. I do not think anyone would dispute their claim to be the No. 1 team who uses the Bruce Stadium.
However, the way the first contract was drawn up made it very difficult and not terribly attractive financially for other teams to use that facility. That facility is a dual facility, a multipurpose sporting facility, the best one in Canberra, and I think all people in this Assembly would like to see as many groups as possible use it. It has been used by Australian rules for some AFL Foster's Cup games. It was used for about five matches last year by the ACT Rugby Union in its matches against interstate and visiting international teams. It was used for the second test between Ireland and Australia in Gaelic football. It has been used for demonstration gridiron games. I had the pleasure of going and getting some of those games for the Territory.
I would like to see it used in future for test matches between Australia and other countries in both rugby union and rugby league. I have put a fair bit of effort into that, and I hope to see that come to fruition. But, for those other groups to use the oval, especially some of the smaller groups - I think it has also been used for soccer - an attractive deal has to be available to them. At present
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