Page 3681 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 20 October 1993
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MS FOLLETT (Chief Minister and Treasurer) (4.03), in reply: I would like to thank members who contributed to this debate. I think we have had some very thoughtful contributions indeed, and they are very welcome. Mr Deputy Speaker, I believe that the support for the national youth policy that was demonstrated at the meeting of youth Ministers last May is very encouraging. It allows the recognition of young people's needs at a national level, and it provides an excellent foundation for the development of appropriate responses to them. As Ms Szuty said, there is always more that we can do, and I am very conscious of that. Nevertheless, I do think that we are making very good progress in the ACT. The national policy also allows for responses to occur in a coordinated fashion across the country, and this in itself will assist in providing a supportive and informative environment for young people which will encourage them to reach their full potential as individuals and as active citizens.
I believe, Mr Deputy Speaker, that the national youth policy provides a valuable tool to use in ensuring that our own policies and programs are developed and delivered in a manner that will benefit young people in the ACT. Most importantly, I believe that the provision of services within the principles and objectives of the national youth policy will assist young people to deal most constructively with the many challenges that they face. The national youth policy also acknowledges the need to enhance support to families in order to assist them to cope better with economic and social change and to protect young people from violence, neglect and discrimination. I think that support for families is an objective that all members could well support. It is, perhaps, an aspect of young people's lives and the policy approach to young people that has not been fully explored yet, and well could be. Mr Deputy Speaker, as is demonstrated by the youth budget statement that was released last month, this Government is committed to addressing the many difficult issues which young people face, and our close participation in the development and the implementation of the national youth policy will assist us in achieving this goal.
I would also like to touch very briefly, Mr Deputy Speaker, on the role of the Chief Minister's Youth Advisory Council. This body, Mr Deputy Speaker, invariably has given very good, very thoughtful and very well-researched advice to me. It is certainly a body whose work I value very highly. I do hope that in the coming months, perhaps the coming years, the Youth Advisory Council will be able to take on board the national youth policy and suggest to the Government further ways in which we can implement this youth policy for the young people of the ACT. I would like to pay a tribute to that Youth Advisory Council for the excellent work that they have done. I would like to wish them all the very best as they draw up a new work program and set their own goals for another term of the council. They have been of great assistance to the Government. I hope that they can see that their advice has been taken and has been implemented, and that even where it has not been implemented it is still being worked upon. I believe, Mr Deputy Speaker, that they deserve the thanks of the Government, and perhaps of the young people of the Territory as well, for the very fine job that they do.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
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