Page 2184 - Week 08 - Thursday, 10 September 1992
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Mr Moore countered that quite well. It may reflect the actual gender balance, although, under my direction, all my departments are looking very carefully at gender balance and equal employment opportunities programs. We on this side of the house regard them as very important - witness our own balance.
Mr Kaine made a comment about photographs. They are small, Mr Kaine, I think you will agree. Indeed, somewhat facetiously I said to the secretary of the department, as this report was in preparation, that I did not want any photographs of me in it at all. I suppose it is inevitable that there is some photographic record, not least because I am out and about in the activities the department promotes. If you look at the photographs - it was only when you mentioned them that I made my own perusal of them - you will find that at least two of them show me in the company of school students. I think it is fair to mention that the photographs show lots of children and lots of people. People are very much in evidence in these photographs.
Mr Kaine: Are you going to reproduce the same photographs in the Education Department report?
MR WOOD: It may well do so. Let me make the comment here that this department is quite active in taking its planning work into schools to talk to students on what planning is about, as well as its environmental activities. It is heavily into schools; and it has sponsored some play activity, some drama activity, free activity by students in schools. It is doing an excellent job to complement the great work our schools do. It is such a good program that I think it is worthy of mention. The fact that so many people are shown in the photographs is clear evidence that the ALP Government, through this department, is heavily into the community consultation that is so important in Canberra.
Mr Kaine raised the issue of program evaluation. It is one that comes up at every Estimates Committee and I have no doubt that it will come up again on this occasion. You can be sure that this Minister and others will be able to answer those questions. We have to look at how much detail we can provide. Do you provide a whole check list of what you have to mark things against? I am not sure that you can go that far. Maybe there is a limit to the fine detail you can provide in documents upon which evaluations may be made.
Mr Kaine also raised the matter of a consultancy of $2,000 or so for a TUTA course. Mr Lamont tells me that he believes - I will provide confirmation or otherwise for you - that this could well be a result of the dispute that arose with the unions as an outcome of the PRB report. Because there was some need for training of unionists, this could well be at the direction of the then Chief Minister and Minister for planning. I will get back to you on that, Mr Kaine.
As to the money that had been provided to draw up the history of self-government in the ACT, that is a matter that interests me, and I have asked for a copy of that history. I am not sure whether it is yet available, but as soon as it becomes available I am sure it will be of interest to all members in this Assembly.
Mr De Domenico: Including Mr Stevenson.
MR WOOD: Perhaps not Mr Stevenson.
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