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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 5 (Hansard) 16 May) . . Page.. 1360 ..

MRS CARNELL: As I understand it, the contribution - - -

Mr Berry: Mr Speaker, on a point of order: The Chief Minister does not have the right to answer the question as she sees fit. Standing order 118 says that it "shall be concise and confined to the subject matter of the question". The subject matter of the question is clear: How much money has the Government put into the project and how many jobs has it created?

MR SPEAKER: There is no point of order.

Ms Follett: You can go on saying that, but it will not make it true.

MR SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order. "Confined to the subject matter of the question" is adequately covered by the Chief Minister's response. Continue, Chief Minister.

MRS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, I believe that the approach I have taken to this question is terribly appropriate. Obviously, those opposite do not believe that it is. As I said, it is a three-way partnership. CFM is contributing to the staffing, leasing and fit-out of the centre for three years. The ASX is providing the electronic share market board. It is also contributing to the staffing of the centre for at least six months. The ACT Government will advertise the centre within and outside the ACT, provide seminar facilities, disseminate CFM services and other products to ACT Government staff, and contribute to the centre's fit-out costs. That is it, Mr Speaker. So, the reality is that the ACT Government, if that is what - - -

Ms McRae: You do not know.

Mr Wood: Another non-answer.

MRS CARNELL: No; I just gave it very clearly. Our part of the three-way deal is to contribute to the fit-out. We are not paying for the staff, we are not paying for relocation, we are not paying for the share market board, and we are not paying for leasing and fit-out of the centre. What we are doing is making sure that ACT Government employees and others know about the sorts of services that can be provided from this centre. I am very happy to get the information on exactly how much of the fit-out costs was provided by the ACT Government; but it was fairly minor, Mr Speaker.

MS FOLLETT: Mr Speaker, having received no answer to the bulk of my question - Mrs Carnell was unable to point to any jobs created by this - I ask a supplementary question. Is it not the case that the Territory's benefits from this new resource are pretty much a pale shadow of what might have been achieved, and was achieved in Brisbane, where there were 50 new jobs created, because Mrs Carnell was simply not quick enough and not astute enough to act swiftly when the Stock Exchange was looking for somewhere to expand? In the words of the chairman of the Stock Exchange, "Wonderful opportunities for the ACT have therefore been completely lost".

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