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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1996 Week 14 Hansard (11 December) . . Page.. 4700 ..

Mr Moore: I mentioned that stunt.

MR HUMPHRIES: Indeed, Mr Moore did mention that enlightened piece of policy-making by the Government. Mr Speaker, the fact is that the Government has been doing a great deal of work over the last little while in directly communicating with shopping centre owners and operators in the city to explain the way in which we have been disseminating our new policy to them in a whole range of ways. The helpShop program is part of that process. It is part of getting out to the shopping centres and telling people about the ways in which their businesses might benefit from - - -

Mr Moore: You have been very positive about that. Now let us get to the variation to the Territory Plan.

MR HUMPHRIES: Yes, indeed. I am advised that in the last little while information, including information about the variation to the betterment policy, has been available in the O'Connor, Deakin, Hughes, Garran and Narrabundah shopping centres. Mr Speaker, the information that comes through all of that is obviously very important in ensuring that people have a capacity to take advantage of those arrangements. I have already had discussions with a number of people who are involved in local centres in a number of ways, to see whether we can in fact provide for information to flow to them on how they can benefit from the processes the Government has put in place. Mr Speaker, I would be surprised if there is any small business operator in this town who owns a small shopping centre or a shop in a small shopping centre and who is not fully aware of the changes the Government has made announcements about.

Mrs Carnell: There is the competition.

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, the Chief Minister reminds me about the competition held recently. It was sponsored by a number of Canberra businesses and provided for ways of revitalising the Canberra small shopping centre scene. Many of those proposals put forward, which were ultimately exhibited up here on the first floor of the Assembly, entailed variations to the design and building of the centres.

Mr Moore: Mr Speaker, I hate to do this, but I take a point of order. I have given Mr Humphries a couple of gentle interjections. What about answering the question I have asked? Standing order 118(a) says that answers "shall be concise and confined to the subject matter of the question". The question was about variation to the Territory Plan.

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, Mr Moore is very impatient - - -

MR SPEAKER: Mr Moore knows that the Minister can answer a question as he sees fit.

Mr Moore: On the point of order, Mr Speaker: It is quite clear. It is not a question of the Minister being able - - -

MR SPEAKER: The answer "shall be concise and confined to the subject matter of the question".

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