Page 4479 - Week 14 - Thursday, 9 December 1993
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Mr Stevenson makes a point that we did not do a good deal. Did we do a good deal by giving them a rent of 10c a year? I think Mr Stevenson said that the rent is 10c when we ask for it. My answer to that is yes, we did do a good deal. It is being effectively and frequently used as a driver training site. It is attracting further development. The $350,000 from the Commonwealth is a good deal and the private sector input is a good deal. It is working well and the ACT Government is not having to fork out very large maintenance money. I think the ACT community has an excellent deal out of this. The site is working brilliantly in the way it was intended. It is cost effective to us and is beneficial to the community broadly. I think that what has happened there is an excellent use of those facilities.
MR CORNWELL (3.40): I listened to the Minister's explanation in response to Mr Stevenson's claims with great interest because I can accept that the people who have this site at the moment have been very fortunate. I am not convinced, however, that the people of the ACT are as fortunate as they could have been. I was interested, particularly - - -
Mr Wood: Do you think it should be a motor sport facility?
MR CORNWELL: I was interested, Mr Wood, in your comments about that: It was never meant to be used as a motor sport facility. In a letter to Mr Peter McAulay, Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police, signed by Mr Bernard Collaery, who was then the Minister, on 1 March 1990, Mr Collaery said:
As you will be aware, the ACT Government proposes to establish a Management Trust to redevelop the Sutton Road complex into an international standard driver training and motorsport facility.
Mr Wood: Once again, he was wrong.
MR CORNWELL: It is interesting, Mr Wood, that you say that, because you too must have been wrong because, on 13 October 1992, in a media statement about the Sutton Road Driver Training Complex, you said at paragraph 4:
... the Sutton Road complex is used for a wide range of activities in addition to driver training. Children's road safety training, tourism-related events, vehicle launches and limited motor sport could be held at the site.
Yet you are now saying that it was never meant to be used as a motor sport facility.
Mr Wood: No, never meant to be used as a racing facility.
MR CORNWELL: I am sorry; I took down your words, sir, and you said "never meant to be used as a motor sport facility". What has gone wrong in the meantime? I suggest that a deal has been done. I suspect that there have been all sorts of deals done. I am appalled that this has been allowed to be handed over to an organisation for 10c. It is no wonder that this Government has so much problem with its budget. It is no wonder that they are talking about tossing out 80 teachers from a system that cannot afford to have 80 teachers taken from it, if this is the way that you do business. Ten cents!
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