Page 4683 - Week 15 - Wednesday, 7 December 1994
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MR WOOD: Yes, it is an appropriate amount of money as we expand what we do in our schools. The particular criteria are: Relevance to changing learning processes in classrooms; expected outcomes benefits for students and the ACT public education system; relationship with the department's priorities for education and strategic directions in information technology; and favourable conditions offered by applicants. Some additional information that was required was the total cost of the project, including the amount sought from the project fund; risk analysis; timetable for implementation; and the contact officer. I will pass the further details that I have to Ms Szuty.
MS SZUTY: I wish to ask a supplementary question, Madam Speaker. Given that only $60,000 is available, Minister, how can you ensure that, as far as possible, children attending government schools will have equal access to information technology?
MR WOOD: Madam Speaker, I think the assumption there is that this is the only money that we are spending on information technology. This is money for innovative new projects. There is quite a range of other information technology projects happening in our schools.
Harcourt Hill Development
MR DE DOMENICO: Madam Speaker, my question without notice is directed to the Minister for the Environment, Land and Planning, Mr Wood. The Minister has previously referred to his Government's joint venture with Cygnet Pty Ltd at Harcourt Hill as a sound business decision, and he reiterated that this afternoon in response to Mrs Carnell. Will the Minister confirm that the private nominee for the joint venture is a Mr Ray Waterson, who is a director of Cygnet Pty Ltd? Can the Minister confirm that Mr Waterson is also a senior director of National Commercial Management Services, the project manager for Harcourt Hill? Is it a fact that National Commercial Management Services has sustained continuous operating losses, for the past three financial years, of $22,625, $32,268 and $32,327?
MR WOOD: I have met a gentleman of that name. I will check to see whether he is the same gentleman as the one you are talking about and I will check the relationship to other companies. As to the operating losses, I do not know about those, and I do not know the nature of those companies. You can write all sorts of information into your balance sheets. I think the key thing to consider here is the Opposition's absolute reluctance to accept the fact that the ACT people should get a fair return from their assets. Opposition members do not seem to want to recognise that. They do not want to know that there are better ways of doing things than the ways they were using in their brief period in government.
MR DE DOMENICO: I have a supplementary question, Madam Speaker. Minister, is it not true that the Commonwealth Bank required the ACT Government to underwrite the joint venture because it was aware of the project manager's financial losses and the lack of assets of Cygnet Pty Ltd? How could your Government sign such
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