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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 5 Hansard (15 May) . . Page.. 1264 ..

MR MOORE: He has urged the Government to do it. It is a motion that I do not think any of us should have trouble with. It is something we should be supporting in principle. It is a good time to slap the Government over the wrists and say, "Hey, if you are going to be on about jobs, capital works is where a lot of them are".

MR DE DOMENICO (Minister for Urban Services) (12.09): Mr Speaker, the Government supports especially that part of Mr Wood's motion that encourages growth and employment in the ACT by accelerating the current capital works program and ensuring that projects advance rapidly. Mr Wood would be aware that every effort is being made to accelerate expenditure on the current capital works program by encouraging, whenever possible and appropriate, faster progress on construction in the field.

Soon after coming to office the Government introduced a number of reforms aimed at improving the capital works process. The preparation of the draft 1996-97 program, for example, was brought forward six months in advance of the upcoming budget to assist in having projects ready for commitment to construction at the beginning of the financial year. Action has also been taken, Mr Speaker, to commence design on projects from next year's draft capital works program. In fact 12 projects from next year's draft program have had design work commenced, and a further 21 are about to be issued.

Mr Wood: That is routine.

MR DE DOMENICO: This will enable the Government to commit to construction. It is not routine, Mr Wood. It should be. You were there for four years, Mr Wood, and it was not routine for the four years that you were there. It has become routine in the 18 months that we have been here. They are the facts, Mr Wood. This will enable the Government to commit projects to construction earlier than originally scheduled and assist in encouraging growth and employment.

I think, Mr Speaker, we need to look at the projects that Mr Wood used as an example. He talked about the Canberra cultural and heritage centre. The project is in both the 1995-96 and 1996-97 capital works programs at $7m. The centre was to be located in the North Building.

Mr Wood: There is no sign of starting it.

MR DE DOMENICO: Mr Wood, you just do not start things without having the proper inquiries, as you would know.

Mr Wood: We did it all.

MR DE DOMENICO: No, you did not do it all, Mr Wood. The costs associated with relocating or otherwise managing the current North Building tenants come to from $2.5m to $5.6m. I know that $5.6m did not seem to be much money when you were in government; but when this Government took office, Mr Wood, we needed to consider all those things that you did not put in your forward estimates, for example.

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