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out at least a rudimentary map of where people are at, of the depth of concern, and gives us a measure of the number of brilliant people within our community who, for very little financial remuneration, are willing to give so much time and so much of themselves to other people who face pretty torrid personal challenges.

I hope that everyone in the Assembly takes the time to have a good look at this report, and even to look at some of the transcripts and further detailed evidence which we took, because this is by no means all of the story. I hope that we can revisit this in a year’s time and have a look at how we are all travelling. Of course, we are going to sit here and accuse the Government of having failed everyone. That is our job; we are the Opposition. But all told there are 17 of us and there are perhaps other areas that we can pick up collectively in the Assembly, and make sure that collectively we do take responsibility for the things that have been talked about, and at least take some steps towards alleviating some of the more extreme hardships that are unnecessarily faced but willingly borne by many people in our community.

MR HIRD (11.12): Mr Speaker, firstly, as a member of the committee, I would like to thank my colleagues on the committee. I would also like to thank the secretary, Judith Henderson, for the fine effort that she put in. I concur with the remarks of the chair and deputy chair about the calibre of the submissions to this inquiry. This is a significant report inasmuch as it was the first report to come from any of the standing committees to the new parliament, the Third Assembly. The calibre of these people and their dedication is without question. Their thoughtfulness, their selflessness and their dedication to their respective communities and their respective individual organisations are beyond doubt. Topics ranged right across a wide spectrum within the ACT community, from people who are disabled to those dealing with violence in our community. One particular submission was very informative not just for the committee but for this parliament. It dealt with the problems of youth within our community. I dare say that this report will be a document that will be used for some time in the future because of the amount of information it contains, as Ms McRae indicated.

The committee has decided to follow up this inquiry with an inquiry into the prevention of violence within our schools. It will look at that particular issue. The committee, the first committee of the new Assembly, made a significant impression with those who made submissions. People were unsure of the roads the new Government would take. That has settled down. It is clear that the Government and the Assembly are here to serve the ACT community and will listen, on a consultative basis, to the needs of our community.

MR KAINE (11.15): I think that this report is deserving of some comment from those of us who were not members of the committee. I found it a very interesting report although there is nothing new in it. I think that most of us who have been around for a while on the local political scene are well aware of the problems that this community experiences. When I read at the back of this report the list of the people who had appeared before the committee, they were all very familiar names. The organisations that they represent are all very familiar organisations. These people and the organisations that they represent make constant representations to the members of this place, through both formal committee proceedings and less formal approaches as people from the electorate who want people like me and you to know what they think about issues.

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