Page 3044 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 17 November 1992
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .
Council is that I want it to retain the capacity to respond to new initiatives. The council will be looking to forge links between client groups and with a range of organisations, both within and external to the Government. It sees one of its major roles as providing leadership and vision in its assistance to arts and special events interests in the ACT.
There will be grant applicants who are disappointed with the result of their application. This is unavoidable. Many worthwhile projects were not supported because of the historical difficulty of demand versus available funds. I have every confidence that the Cultural Council has provided the best possible balance of funding within the available budget, and that the Territory's cultural development will continue to be fostered. I present the following papers:
Cultural Council - Arts Grants Program -
Ministerial statement, 17 November 1992.
1993 Arts Grants.
I move:
That the Assembly takes note of the papers.
Debate (on motion by Mr Cornwell) adjourned.
GOVERNMENT SERVICE - ACCESS BY NON-GOVERNMENT MEMBERS
Discussion of Matter of Public Importance
MADAM SPEAKER: I have received letters from Mrs Carnell, Mr Cornwell and Mr Humphries proposing matters of public importance to be submitted to the Assembly. In accordance with standing order 79, I have determined that the matter proposed by Mr Cornwell be submitted to the Assembly for discussion, namely:
The lack of direct access to the ACT Public Service by non-Government Members pursuing constituency matters.
MR CORNWELL (3.27): Madam Speaker, here in the ACT we still fly a flag which carries the words "For the Queen, the Law and the People". While the Australian Labor Party has made it publicly known that it would like to exclude the Queen from our processes of government, there appears to be a far more sinister move at hand also to exclude the people from that process. As members of the Assembly, we formulate and pass the laws and regulations by which these very people live their lives. We debate at length the conditions under which people of the ACT will park their cars, walk their dogs, plan their homes, operate their businesses, educate their children, attend to their health, pay their rates, and even plan their leisure. We undertake to represent the electorate of the ACT; that is, we undertake to represent the individual citizens of this fair city and Territory.
We would assume, then, that we, as members of the ACT Assembly, could approach any relevant member of the ACT public service to seek information or action on behalf of our constituents. I speak not simply of Labor members. Bear in mind that over 50 per cent of those who voted in our recent election did not vote for ALP candidates. They voted for Liberals; they voted for Independents;
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .