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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 1 Hansard (18 February) . . Page.. 4 ..

MR CORBELL (continuing):

In Canberra, as elsewhere, we are affected by nothing less than a fundamentalist belief which has held sway around Australia for over 10 years. Yet we are still told to tighten belts, to do more with less, to accept the reality of the market and the economy. We are still waiting for a reward which will never arrive.

Mr Speaker, Canberra deserves a brighter and more optimistic future than the one which is presented to us by this Government and governments past and present federally. Canberra deserves an alternative which will build a fairer society, one which will place the importance of the community and of each individual's unique contribution above that of their pure personal wealth. To achieve this means understanding the extent and impact which this and previous governments' policies have had upon our city. We have to acknowledge the mistakes of the past; we have to listen to the needs of people in the community; and we have to work together to build a fairer and more peaceful community.

The most valuable part of any society is its people. The extent to which people feel they can contribute to the community depends on how secure and safe they feel within it. We cannot expect people to be able to participate in our community if their ability to physically access their city, to maintain their health and wellbeing and to find safe and affordable accommodation is not ensured and many other needs are not met. Yet Canberra, which once prided itself on the high standard of its services to people, now leaves out and leaves behind those who do not have the financial ability to meet their needs.

Mr Speaker, as an example I will instance two elderly sisters in their eighties and living in Weston Creek who rely upon easy access to the bus service to travel to the shops, to do their grocery shopping, just to get out of the house once a week to have a meal and interact with others. This year, ACTION determined that their route was not economically viable and changed it. As a result, the sisters - one with a heart condition - now face a 30-minute walk uphill just to catch the nearest bus. I am sure that ACTION would argue that it must be efficient and financially viable, but I know that the sisters would say that a bus service should be designed to meet the needs of people, not an arbitrary budget figure. Mr Speaker, this story highlights a far more important point, namely, that a government which allows the narrow and self-interested demands of the market to dictate how it provides community services denies ordinary Canberrans the opportunity to play a part in their community. The Government's policies will mean that more people will become isolated and unable to contribute to our society, purely because they cannot afford it. All of us are the poorer as a result.

Mr Speaker, another of Canberra's most valuable assets is its land, its natural and its built environment. The foresight of this city's designers has created a physical environment which has provided a high quality of life and has given people a valuable connection between our urban and natural environments. Land in Canberra is owned by the people, by all of us, through leasehold. This has allowed development to take place only when it is in the interests of society overall. Leasehold is our guarantee of a city which meets the needs of people, rather than the interests of developers or any other party alone. Land in Canberra is valuable, because it is owned by all of us. The benefits which individuals obtain through the use of it require them to pay for that use, through betterment or lease renewal, and this revenue in return is used by government to maintain

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