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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 5 Hansard (15 May) . . Page.. 1530 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

Basically, I repeat that there will be some increase in costs, obviously, in our amendment. They will not be nearly as great as the costs in the Labor amendment. I believe that we have come up with a compromise, if you like. There will still be revenue for the Government out of this debits tax, if it is passed with our amendment, although it obviously will be $800,000-odd shorter; but I am afraid that that might just have to be the reality of the situation.

MRS CARNELL (Chief Minister and Treasurer) (4.59): There are a number of problems with Ms Tucker's approach. By extending the rebate to all people with health care cards, we get back to the situation of people who have health care cards for part of the year and all those sorts of difficulties, which increase the level of administration and the costs. As well as that, it increases the number of people involved by somewhere between 7,000 and 10,000, and that comes at a cost of about $280,000. Mr Speaker, $280,000 may not seem like a lot to Ms Tucker, but it is a lot to the Government. It is an enormous amount of money.

Ms Tucker: I did not say that. I acknowledge that it is a lot of money, Mrs Carnell.

MRS CARNELL: I am sorry; Ms Tucker said, "It is a lot of money"; so, she obviously - - -

Ms Tucker: It is the price you might have to pay for equity.

MRS CARNELL: Where is it going to come from? The issue here, Mr Speaker, is that the Government has been willing to give on this issue, to determine that we will have to find extra money to cover the long-term unemployed that we did not anticipate in our original Bill; but, because we were attempting to find a middle line here between the different parties of the Assembly, we determined that the long-term unemployed could be included. To start with, they are long term; they have been unemployed for 12 months; they do not tend to move in and out of the system - all of the sorts of things I have said before, Mr Speaker.

Debate interrupted.

ADJOURNMENT

MR SPEAKER: Order! It being 5.00 pm, I propose the question:

That the Assembly do now adjourn.

Mr Humphries: I require the question to be put forthwith without debate.

Question resolved in the negative.

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