Page 5 - Week 01 - Friday, 27 March 1992
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The people of Canberra have opted for many new faces amongst those who represent them in this Assembly. It is up to us to reflect that choice with a change in the conduct of the Assembly. Madam Speaker, now is the moment to commit ourselves to an Assembly which will act in terms of what is best for Canberra and its future, and not for personal interest or out of political animosity. Now is the moment to decide that in three years' time each of us should be able to recall that our efforts to serve the community were sensible, dignified and, above all, carried out with a genuine desire to make our community a better place in which to live.
Madam Speaker, recent comments by the Federal Leader of the Opposition, and even by a Federal Minister, are a reminder to us of our vulnerability to those who seek to cash in on prejudices about Canberra. We are all painfully aware of the image of Canberra that is projected to Australia as a whole. Canberra is often seen simply as a creation of the Commonwealth Government, and therefore indistinguishable from it. Combined with Australians' cynicism about government, it is easy for Australians to see us as a drab, out-of-touch and even un-Australian city. The First Assembly can only have provided evidence for this stereotype.
For as long as this image persists, our community remains a target, not just for the knockers but, most importantly, for the Commonwealth Government itself, whatever its political colour. So, with this danger in mind, one of our roles as an Assembly over the next three years must be to help our community fashion its own identity and to project that identity beyond our borders. Canberra is already much more the creation of the people who live and work here than it is a product of the politicians and administrators who worked to create the city from nothing.
Our city's physical setting and planned environment is without peer. We are a highly educated and innovative community with the capacity to create original solutions to many of our own problems. Our population is diverse in its origins and, as a result, has the strengths that come from a very cosmopolitan view of the world. But, most importantly, we do have a real sense of community. This sense of community is obvious at times like the recent Canberra Day celebrations. It is shown more subtly by the thousands of people who, without recognition, devote their energy towards assisting those in need and in running the many community groups that help to create the life of our community. While these parts of Canberra's identity may not be perceived by the rest of Australia, they provide us as a community and as an Assembly with a great deal to build upon.
Madam Speaker, securing the ACT's economic and financial future must be central to our efforts. While we may have fared comparatively well in the current recession compared with the rest of the country, we must be careful that we share in the recovery at least at the same rate. Without creative and well thought out strategies for economic and financial security, we will not be successful in creating a fair and just community.
The many people in our community who face real disadvantage - the ageing, those with disabilities or poor health, Aboriginal people, people from other cultures, the unemployed and those simply down on their luck - all look to us to assist in creating an economy and a community in which social injustice can be fought successfully. Many other challenges face the Assembly and our community. Protection of the environment, enhancing our health and education systems, and providing for the needs of a growing and energetic community are some of those challenges.
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