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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 6 Hansard (17 June) . . Page.. 1628 ..

MS HORODNY (12.31): Mr Speaker, it has been an ongoing concern to the Greens that there is no separate environment budget in the overall ACT budget.

Mr Wood: There used to be.

MS HORODNY: Yes, there used to be. We have a Minister for the Environment, but the budget gives no clear idea of the appropriation provided for the Environment Minister's portfolio. This is quite an anomaly, relative to the other ministerial portfolios, and needs to be corrected. We are glad that the committee has recommended that there be a separately identifiable provision for those elements of the budget that fall directly under the portfolio of the Environment Minister. The recommendation refers only to the environment budget being included in the Budget at a Glance paper, but I hope that the Government will also include it in the detailed budget information in Budget Paper No. 4.

We are glad that the committee has recommended that the Government inform the Assembly about what is happening with the dumping of building rubble at Fairbairn Park. We have said all along that the idea of taking building rubble from Acton Peninsula to build so-called noise mounds at Fairbairn Park was dodgy, and it was the Greens who exposed the fact that building rubble was being dumped there illegally. We hope that the Government will sort out this mess very quickly and ensure that the full legal process is followed in penalising this illegal activity. It was very naughty, Mrs Carnell.

The section in the report on Landcare groups does not reflect the great difficulties we have had in getting out of the Government information about its expenditure on Decade of Landcare projects. Only yesterday did I receive the answers to the questions I asked during the Estimates Committee hearings; so, it was too late to incorporate into the committee's report any comments on the Government's response. Let me say at this point that we are not satisfied with the Government's answers on Landcare funding. We certainly have not reached the bottom of the issue as to whether Landcare money is being spent effectively in the ACT. We will be seeking further information from the Government on its spending priorities for Landcare projects.

Debate (on motion by Mrs Carnell) adjourned.

MRS CARNELL (Chief Minister and Treasurer) (12.34): I seek leave to present the Rates and Land Tax (Amendment) Bill 1997.

Leave granted.

MRS CARNELL: I present the Rates and Land Tax (Amendment) Bill 1997, together with its explanatory memorandum.

Title read by Clerk.

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