Page 10 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 22 February 1994
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keeping place when we quite clearly have an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community who are much better placed to make those sorts of decisions and ought to be consulted. I will be awaiting advice from the advisory council on the further development of the keeping place. I know that they are working on it; they have continuing consultations.
In relation to the regional cultural centre, the PDI Committee's recommendation was subject to some costing detail, as I recall it. My colleague Mr Wood and I have had a number of discussions on the costing detail of that proposal. I think it is accurate to say at the moment that there are issues still to be resolved, but we will certainly be advising the Assembly at the first possible opportunity on the further development of that cultural centre. Madam Speaker, I will get a full report for Mr Kaine. That, for the moment, is the information that I am able to make available.
MR KAINE: I have a supplementary question, Madam Speaker. The Chief Minister has said that she is not in any hurry to spend this money, or she has not placed any great priority on that. I would remind her that it is $19m that was promised by the Government for community facilities. I just ask: Does she use a whiteboard, and does she intend to dispense this money just before the next election?
MS FOLLETT: I know that Mr Kaine would like to be the whiteboard monitor, but the answer to both questions is no.
ACT 2000 Committee
MRS GRASSBY: My question is to the Deputy Chief Minister in his capacity as Minister for Sport. Could the Minister inform the Assembly what are the issues and the opportunities identified by the ACT 2000 Committee to date?
MR BERRY: I hear a chuckle from the Opposition. They do not seem to be interested in the opportunities that will flow to the ACT as a result of the great win by Sydney of the right to host the Olympic Games in the year 2000. I thank Mrs Grassby for the question. The initial meetings of the ACT 2000 Committee have highlighted various issues and opportunities for Canberra as a result of the 2000 games. Some of the many issues which are being considered include the need to develop a tourism marketing strategy to maximise international visitation to the region over the next 14-year period. Essentially I see that as an extension of what we already do. A couple of recent examples have been the visit to the ACT by some Japanese soccer teams. I give credit to those people who organised that, because I think it has improved the ACT's standing in Japan no end. When you add that to the hard work that was done in Japan by the Chief Minister some time ago, the advantages to the ACT are beginning to flow. That is one aspect of it.
The opportunities to have the ACT and regional businesses involved in the development and staging of the 2000 games also have been identified by that committee. The opportunity to develop sport as a significant part of the Australian culture in Canberra's tourism attraction is an obvious one; nonetheless people have to do some more work to take the best advantage of it. There is the
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