Page 1054 - Week 04 - Wednesday, 20 April 1994
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Public Surveys
MR STEVENSON: Madam Speaker, my question of the Chief Minister concerns government surveys. During the five-year term or, I could say, sentence of this Assembly, how many surveys have been conducted by the Government or government departments; and would the Chief Minister be good enough to table the questions, their answers and the exact methodology used in those surveys? With regard to the recent survey by my party on electoral matters, the Chief Minister suggested that the 507 people that we surveyed over eight suburbs were an insufficient number and said that her advice was that 2,000 was a more appropriate number. Would she please indicate whom the advice was from and whether it was verbal or in writing; and, if it was in writing, would she be good enough to table it in this Assembly?
MS FOLLETT: Madam Speaker, Mr Stevenson's question is utterly bizarre. He has asked me to stand up here and tell you about all of the surveys that have been conducted by ACT governments over five years. That is a ridiculous proposition. I quite clearly do not have that sort of information with me. Madam Speaker, I would have to take that question - I presume it to be a serious question - on notice.
Members will be aware that two householder surveys have been conducted. Of course, those surveys go to all ratepayers in the ACT. They have recently been extended to Housing Trust tenants as well. Those surveys go to however many households there are in the Territory - over 100,000, I believe. Many other surveys are conducted on different subjects across all agencies in the ACT Administration. To collate the information that Mr Stevenson's question implies would be a massive task. Madam Speaker, with respect to Mr Stevenson, I suggest that he and I might discuss narrowing down the scope of his question in some way, so that it does not impose such a massive drain on resources as it presently would.
Mr Stevenson further asked about his own electoral survey. Madam Speaker, I can say that the advice that I had on this matter was from my usual public service source. However, Madam Speaker, I do consider that - - -
Mr Stevenson: Which one was that?
MS FOLLETT: Madam Speaker, it was from my usual public service source. I do believe, however, that saying that a sample of 2,000 might have been appropriate was probably a fairly conservative view. The major problem with Mr Stevenson's survey was the lack of randomness of samples or the lack of evening out for demographic characteristics and so on that was inherent in his survey because he conducted his survey at shopping centres. Admittedly it was conducted over a number of shopping centres, but it included working days. Members would be well aware that you do not get an average sample of residents of the ACT at a shopping centre during working hours.
Mr Kaine: Sample size and randomness are two different things, Chief Minister. You were talking about sample size.
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