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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1995 Week 9 Hansard (23 November) . . Page.. 2535 ..

MR BERRY: I am sure that everybody lined up and said, "Yes, we would love a fee increase". The community was promised not one cent more; not one cent more would it cost under a Carnell government. Who is "they"? Not the students who are thinking about going to the institute for training. The fact of the matter is that if you are not compatible with this Government you are in trouble. The theys of the world have been subdued by threats from this Government, with all the force that it has been prepared to bring to bear on these people. The fact of the matter is that the future students, who have not had a say in these fees increases and are not getting a say in them, are going to have to pay more under this Government. Again, the ACT community will have to suffer because of a breach of promise by this Government. Again, I go back to the old promise: Not one cent more.

Mrs Carnell: Who said that?

Ms Follett: You did.

Mrs Carnell: No, we did not.

MR BERRY: Not one cent more. Mrs Carnell, not one cent more. You can add them all up. People will be paying hundreds of dollars extra per year to live under this regime, because of the broken promises. They will have fewer schools. There will be less access to the Institute of Technology because of these increased fees. The people who need the training the most are those who often can least afford it. With these increases, we get another serve of the cruel Carnell Government. I heard somebody snigger about that issue. It is a serious issue.

Mrs Carnell: No. That was just a stupid statement; that is all.

Ms McRae: Of course Mrs Carnell would know, wouldn't she, Mr Berry?

MR BERRY: She would be the best one to pick out a stupid statement. She has had plenty of practice at it. We end up seeing receipts rising by 68 per cent over four years, while the appropriation from the Government rises by only 13 per cent. We know who is paying for the increased costs in the CIT. Not the people who are there now, but future students who require that training. They have certainly not been asked whether they want increased fees. I draw that to the attention of members. This is another good reason to oppose this cruel budget.

MR STEFANIAK (Minister for Education and Training) (3.27 am): I remember Mr Berry saying, I think a couple of months ago - and it is a classic - that there should be consultation. He is a great unionist and always wants the union involved. The Students Association was consulted in relation to this fee increase and was very happy with it. The association supported a 10 per cent increase. The association wanted extra student places as a result and got them. The fact is that there are over 500 new places for the CIT next year. The Students Association was quite happy with this fee increase. Mr Berry's press release was quite incredible, because we consulted the very people that he would want us to consult.

Proposed expenditure agreed to.

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