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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 6 Hansard (18 June) . . Page.. 1735 ..

Mr Whitecross: There will be a roster of Liberal Party people to get on the bus. Stephen Forshaw will be handing out the dollar coins, saying, "Here you go; catch the bus to Fyshwick and back".

MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Whitecross, you have already spoken twice.

MR HUMPHRIES: Those opposite will be embarrassed when Mr Kaine comes back and says that since yesterday five people or six people, or whatever it might be, have travelled on this service now provided to the people of the ACT. Will they be embarrassed? I do not think they will be. They are totally shameless. If the opinion poll with about 38 per cent of people knowing who Mr Whitecross is does not embarrass you, then obviously nothing will.

Let me give you some advice. If you want to win back the confidence of the people of the ACT at the election in February of next year, you have to show you can put aside the narrow, vested interests of the Transport Workers Union in favour of the broader interest of the public of the ACT, in particular, the passengers who happen to need and rely upon a good transport system operating in our Territory. They are the people you have to address. You are not going to win votes by saying no to anything private - down come the shutters; no, nothing private; if it is private it is bad; four legs good, two legs bad; no, we cannot tolerate this. That is not going to win you the next election. You have to accept that the people of this community are the people you should be putting first, and that is what this trial is all about - putting the people of the ACT first. Those people who cannot get a convenient bus service from particular points at the moment are the ones we are looking out for in this service, and they are the ones who are going to benefit from the operation of this trial.

MS TUCKER (12.11): I want to point out one thing that was incorrect in what Mr Whitecross said. He was making a very strong point of the fact that we do not know what the demand is; but anybody who looks at transport and trying to increase use of public transport, including Roger Graham's report, says that you actually create the demand by providing the services. I am afraid Mr Whitecross has it wrong there.

Question put:

That the amendment (Ms Horodny's), as amended, be agreed to.

The Assembly voted -

		AYES, 11			 NOES, 6

	Mrs Carnell	Mrs Littlewood		Mr Berry
	Mr Cornwell	Mr Moore		Mr Corbell
	Mr Hird		Mr Osborne		Ms McRae
	Ms Horodny	Mr Stefaniak		Ms Reilly
	Mr Humphries	Ms Tucker		Mr Whitecross
	Mr Kaine				Mr Wood

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