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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 7 Hansard (20 June) . . Page.. 1986 ..

MR HUMPHRIES (continuing):

that operate those supermarkets. Coles is not locally owned. Woolworths is not locally owned. Most of these supermarkets are owned by people who have national interests outside the ACT, and every single cent of profit that they make goes outside the ACT as soon as it is made.

Mr Speaker, this Government makes no secret of and no apology for supporting local business and the maintenance of local profits in the local economy. We will continue to do so under this policy. This policy is going to deliver some results for small business. It is the first time that any government in this Territory has addressed the question and decided to make a decision that would benefit small business locally.

MR MOORE: I would like to ask a supplementary question, Mr Speaker. It is interesting that the question was flicked from the Bantam of the Opera across to Mr Humphries.

MR SPEAKER: No preamble. Ask your supplementary question.

MR MOORE: Indeed, Mr Speaker.

Mr Humphries: That was yesterday's joke, Michael.

MR MOORE: That is all right. I will keep it coming. If you were really genuine in trying to protect small business, in the way that you claim you are, would you not do one of two things - either cut the trading hours in the group centres as well or stop the expansion of retail space? Which of those are you going to do, Minister?

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, the Government intends to ensure that people have two things under this policy. One is that they will have a real choice of shopping opportunities in the ACT. If they really like to shop in places like Coles, they can keep shopping in Coles, or in Woolworths or wherever it is they want to shop at. We will also make sure that they can shop at those places at retail hours that suit them. If they happen to like shopping at 11 o'clock at night at a Coles supermarket, they might not be able to shop at a Coles, say, in Woden, but they can shop at a Coles at Curtin, which has the same hours or longer hours, and they will be able to get the things they want at that supermarket. Mr Speaker, the reason that we have not gone further - - -

Members interjected.

MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Humphries has the floor. Unless there is order, some members might end up on an early shopping expedition this afternoon.

MR HUMPHRIES: They all have the answers, have they not, Mr Speaker? They all know the answers; but let me tell you, Mr Speaker, that if we had restricted access to group centres as well, as suggested by Mr Moore - which is a strange suggestion from someone who said that we have gone too far even in cutting back the town centres - then we would have denied access to the places where people can get

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