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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 4 Hansard (16 April) . . Page.. 926 ..

MRS CARNELL (continuing):

Mr Wood, we have identified the sorts of costs that would occur to the ACT if some of the, I believe, outlandish figures that some people, including some of those opposite, have been bandying around - - -

Mr Kaine: Scaremongering.

MRS CARNELL: It has been scaremongering, without doubt. In fact, in line with that approach, we have made it clear to the Federal coalition that, if significant redundancies were to happen in the ACT, that would produce substantial costs to the Territory and we would expect those costs to be picked up in terms of our grants. The sorts of figures are very difficult to come up with, simply because we do not know how many redundancies there would be. But the work is being done; there would be costs to the ACT; and we have spoken to the Federal Government and told them quite definitely that we would require appropriate compensation if they took the approach that some people have suggested.

MR WOOD: I have a supplementary question, Mr Speaker. The Chief Minister has again quite clumsily tried to sidestep the question. I was not asking how things had chronically changed, if indeed they had. I was asking about the assessment of the likely impact by her Office of Financial Management. I was not scaremongering. If anything was scaremongering, it was the statement by Mr Kaine that 15,000 people might leave this Territory. There has been no stronger statement than that.

MR SPEAKER: Is that a supplementary question? There is no answer to it, really.

MR WOOD: I am quite happy to carry on, Mr Speaker.

MR SPEAKER: Just ask your supplementary question; otherwise, you will not be carrying on at all - except perhaps somewhere else.

MR WOOD: Let me ask the question in a slightly different way. Does the Chief Minister and Treasurer expect that the budget forecasts on revenue - - -

Mr Kaine: On a point of order, Mr Speaker: Does a supplementary question consist of asking the same question in a different way? I think you should rule on that. I thought a supplementary question was supposed to be a supplementary question.

MR SPEAKER: I will listen carefully. Of course, there is the possibility that, if it is the same question, it may evince the same answer.

MR WOOD: We have been trying for years just to get the right answer, or to get an answer at all, from the Chief Minister and other Ministers - not continual sidestepping, as we have seen today. Does the ACT Treasurer expect that the budget forecasts of revenue from conveyancing, land sales and payroll tax are on target, or does she expect that the budget forecasts will be affected by likely Commonwealth action?

MR SPEAKER: I will allow the question; but you may answer it as you see fit, Chief Minister.

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