Page 3221 - Week 10 - Thursday, 16 September 1993
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Today Mr Connolly said that they could not do that because the Commonwealth, to quote him, has chopped our HACC funds massively. The massive cut that Mr Connolly refers to is a $12,000 reduction out of a total of $3.2m. This is the massive reduction that was inflicted on the ACT Government. Because of a $12,000 reduction in the Commonwealth funding, out of a $3.2m subvention, they have frozen the HACC money for this year, and they have told the ACT Council on the Ageing so. Yet the Chief Minister said yesterday that they have increased the HACC funding. I think it is something that the Minister and the Chief Minister need to look at. It is another part of the myth of the social justice budget. And so it goes on.
I asked about the provision of facilities for the ageing. There are absolutely none. I gave the Chief Minister the opportunity to tell us that she had something in the forward design program so that it might come up next year, but there is no provision for that either; and they have the effrontery to come in here and talk about social justice. So there are at least four great myths. First of all, it was a tough budget; secondly, we have actually made expenditure reductions in health and education; thirdly, it is a jobs budget; and, fourthly, it is a social justice budget. It is none of those things, Mr Temporary Deputy Speaker, and it is about time somebody set the record straight.
Of course, the community has made its judgment about this budget. It was presented only two days ago, but the community has made its judgment and I think that this Government stands condemned. The first judgment about it was by Ian Davis, and his heading in the Canberra Times was, "Failed". That is your mark on your performance on your budget - "Failed". It is not only Mr Davis; the entire community agrees with him. The teachers union agrees with him, the Trades and Labour Council agrees, the ACT Business Council agrees, the Motor Trades Association agrees, the ACT Chamber of Commerce agrees, and even ACTCOSS agrees. This Government's biggest supporter in town has told them that their budget is a failure for two reasons: Firstly, because of its effect on public housing, and, secondly, because of the job losses - those 1,000 jobs that I mentioned before that have disappeared out of the system. ACTCOSS has given them a fail mark because of that. The ACTU's accommodation group has given them a fail mark and the ACT Council on the Ageing has given them a fail mark.
This is not just me speaking and it is not just Ian Davis speaking. It represents the entire spectrum - trade unions, business, the welfare sector. Everybody in this city in two days has condemned this budget for what it is - a sham and a failure. I think it is interesting that the Chief Minister does not want to sit here and listen to the debate.
Mr Lamont: She did. She listened to the Leader of the Opposition.
MR KAINE: This debate is still going on, Mr Lamont. This debate is still going on and there are other people yet to speak; but, of course, the Chief Minister does not want to sit here and listen because she is absolutely embarrassed. She knows that her budget was a failure.
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