Page 2431 - Week 09 - Thursday, 17 September 1992
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MR MOORE: It was the president of the Council of Parents and Citizens Associations, Ms Pam Cahir. What we expect here is a government that will take opportunities to ensure that their basic philosophy is incorporated in improving equality of opportunity for all. Equity in social justice starts first and foremost in equal opportunity in education. With a real reduction in education instead of a significant increase in education, what we see is the loss of opportunity, the loss of equity, and a backdown on social justice.
On page 13 of the Chief Minister's speech is this statement in relation to education:
The longer term funding arrangements for non-government schools will follow from our consideration of the Berkeley Report.
The Government now has the Berkeley report. They have had time to consider it; and they could have responded appropriately to it in this budget. It is an opportunity lost. When I speak of opportunities lost, I am also very conscious of the fact that what we have is the first budget of a government that is in power for three years. We have fixed term elections; we have three years.
Mr De Domenico: That is up to you.
MR MOORE: Both Ms Szuty and I independently have stated again and again that we will support Rosemary Follett, the Chief Minister, and that we will pass this Bill, along with the Supply Bill, without amendment. You have that commitment; there is no question about that commitment, and I reiterate it, appropriately, in this speech. I reiterate it particularly at this time, when I talk about opportunities lost, so that next year, when you think about a long-term strategy, and you now have 12 months to plan for it, you can have a look at opportunity and be ready to grasp that opportunity and take it.
One area where there is an attempt to take that opportunity is community support services, where there is approximately an 8 per cent increase in the budget. In that area it is opportunity taken, and I congratulate the Government on that. But let us put it in perspective. It is a Federal Labor government that has given us a recession, that has turned out the unemployment figures we have, that has given us problems with housing, that has created the problems that require a significant increase in community support services. Nevertheless, congratulations do apply, and it would be churlish of us not to apply them at the appropriate spot.
In terms of law and order, we should also look at the finances that have gone into crime prevention. It is crime prevention that our police forces have been working on in practice, and that is one thing that distinguishes them from many other forces throughout the world. If the Australian Federal Police were to compare themselves to other police worldwide, I think they would find that they are world leaders in terms of crime prevention and community policing. That is something that needs to be encouraged and improved. The Minister for police, although he probably does not like to use that title, has put money directly into crime prevention, and the focus on that area deserves congratulations.
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