Page 4364 - Week 15 - Tuesday, 19 November 1991
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We have allocated a considerable amount of money to those unemployment initiatives at a time when, as I am sure Mr Kaine appreciates, the budget is very tight. Quite clearly, the issue of youth unemployment and of assisting women who wish to return to the paid work force is one that has been taken into account in the current budget, and I am sure members in their debate on the Appropriation Bill will pay full tribute to that.
We have also allocated in the budget a significant amount of money to new construction programs and new capital works, and that is a significant step in creating employment in the Territory in the construction arena. Mr Kaine would be aware of that because his committee has reported upon that program. I think our new capital works program stands in stark contrast to what some States have been able to achieve in that area. The most notable of those is New South Wales, under a Liberal Government, whose new capital works program contained precisely nothing.
In terms of creating employment through government construction activity, I believe that we have made a very creditable effort in the ACT, and I am very pleased that we were able to do that. Part of that effort, of course, was to double the public housing numbers over the numbers Mr Kaine was able to achieve while he was in government. That again addresses both the issue of employment in the construction industry and the housing needs of our community.
I am also aware, and I am sure Mr Kaine is, that employment is one of the issues that we will be addressing at the meeting of heads of State governments in Adelaide later this week. I expect that some useful initiatives and useful debate will come out of that meeting. Furthermore, I have written to the Prime Minister on a couple of occasions in regard to some major projects in the ACT on which only the Federal Government can make progress at this point. Those projects include the National Museum of Australia, the old Parliament House, whose refurbishment I believe is becoming an urgent matter, and other issues such as the proposed freight distribution centre from Canberra Airport, the future of the very fast train, and so on.
We have taken a great many reasonable steps to maintain employment levels in the ACT and to address the level of unemployment. As I am sure Mr Kaine is aware, the ACT continues to have the lowest overall rate of unemployment in Australia. It is my intention to protect that position and to improve upon it. Of course, we have a particular problem in the area of youth unemployment, where our level is currently around 17 per cent - still somewhat below the national average, but a very worrying level. I trust that the measures we have taken through the budget in particular and through the other initiatives I have outlined will help to alleviate that situation.
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