Page 1306 - Week 05 - Thursday, 25 June 1992
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It is very perceptive when it recommends that. On many long weekends in the ACT literally thousands of Canberra cars go across the border to Queanbeyan and people shop there. That is something the Government ought to be looking at.
Recommendation 15 talks about the issue of penalty rates and associated award conditions within the retail, hospitality and associated service industries, and suggests that the Government should refer the issue to its Industrial Relations Advisory Committee. I think the Liberal Party would go a step further and say that the time for referring matters to committees is long past, and that we need some action. I look forward to Mr Berry's reaction to things such as deregulation of trading hours and the labour market at the same time, because we all know that to do one without the other is virtually useless. For all those reasons, the report is to be commended. A lot of what it says is very good. It is an excellent report. What is lacking now is government action to make sure that most of the recommendations come into being.
MS SZUTY (3.39): Madam Speaker, I do not intend to take up members' time by addressing at length the EPACT report on youth unemployment. I have raised the issue of youth unemployment as a matter of public importance in this Assembly; I have moved a motion for this Assembly to establish a select committee to inquire into youth unemployment; and the Standing Committee on Social Policy has further discussed whether to establish a select committee of this Assembly on youth unemployment. I believe that my views on youth unemployment and what can be done to address the issue are well known, and I do not propose to take up members' time by speaking further on the issue at this time.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
STATUS OF WOMEN
Ministerial Statement
Debate resumed from 17 June 1992, on motion by Ms Follett:
That the Assembly takes note of the paper.
MRS CARNELL (3.40): It is with great pleasure that I respond to Ms Follett's status of women statement. In the Chief Minister's statement she covers a large range of areas which are very important to women and to the wider community. In fact, at first glance it would seem that her speech could have been written from Liberal Party policy. Rather than attempt, though, to make political points on this issue, I believe that it is important to note the large areas of overlap between the major parties in the area of women's policy. This should mean that great gains can be made in our joint goal of fostering the principle of equal opportunity for women.
During the time of the Alliance Government much progress was made in improving the lot of ACT women. In March 1990 the Alliance Government's policy on the status of women was released. This document provided a practical, manageable and comprehensive program for reform in many of the areas that interest women, particularly employment, education, health, accommodation and safety. The ACT Women's Consultative Council became fully functional, and the publication Women ACT was initiated. The Alliance Government also
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