Page 1065 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 23 June 1992
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Disability Services
MR LAMONT: My question is addressed to the Minister for Housing and Community Services. Today the Minister signed an agreement with the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Howe, on the transfer of disability services. What are the implications of this agreement for the delivery of disability services within the ACT?
MR CONNOLLY: Yes, this morning the Deputy Prime Minister and I signed the Commonwealth-State disability agreement for the ACT. Members will recall that in July of last year the Chief Minister and other heads of government put their signatures to the head Commonwealth-State disability agreement. The purpose of that agreement was to rationalise services for disabled people and avoid duplication. At the moment both the Commonwealth and the States provide accommodation and accommodation support services in a fairly confused manner, with a considerable degree of overlap and duplication. Similarly, both the Commonwealth and the States run employment and rehabilitation programs, again with some duplication and overlap.
The purpose of the agreement, essentially, is to combine the responsibility between the two levels of government. The principal effect of the agreement is that the Commonwealth transfers to the ACT responsibility and long-term funding for accommodation services. It means that a number of services well known to members - the ACT Society for Physically Handicapped resources at Hartley Court, Sharing Places at Pearce, Focus and the Pegasus riding facility - will come across to the ACT. There will be some net additional resources available for this type of service in the ACT. Importantly, we are committed to maintaining real services at 1989-90 base levels; so we are committed to maintaining the delivery of those services.
Members will recall that late last year this Assembly passed the ACT Disability Services Act. That is the real base. Obviously, inflation affects that; but that has been agreed nationally as the standard base from which everyone will operate - which means that in the long term, with States facing difficult budgets, there is a guarantee that we will continue to do at least what we were doing then. You will recall that this Assembly passed the Disability Services Act, which is a basis for this. For members' information I table the disability services agreement that was signed this morning. I extend an offer to any members who are interested to contact my office. A briefing will be arranged and senior officers of my department will take any members who are particularly interested through the details of this agreement and its implications.
Abortion Clinic
MR HUMPHRIES: My question concerns the Government's failure to enter into meaningful consultation with the community. It is directed to the Minister for Health. An ABC radio news report this morning stated that the Minister would neither confirm nor deny a claim that he intended to fund an abortion clinic in the Territory. Given this Government's claim to be a consultative one, will the Minister make his intentions clear to the house and unequivocally state whether he will or will not fund an abortion clinic following passage of the Termination of
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