Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 6 Hansard (18 June) . . Page.. 1759 ..

MR HUMPHRIES: I want to provide some supplementary information to answer a question I took on notice in question time today. I table a document that indicates estimates, as best they are known, of visitor numbers to Tidbinbilla as a result of the charging of entry fees, implementation costs of the project and revenue estimates and also a possible situation in terms of the financial position if there was a 30 per cent drop in visitor numbers to Tidbinbilla. The 30 per cent figure, I have to emphasise, is a worst case scenario that was referred to in the documents Mr Corbell has just tabled. It does not indicate, as Mr Corbell suggested in question time that it did, that the Parks and Conservation Service believe that there will be a 30 per cent drop in visitor numbers.

Mr Corbell: No; that is not what we said.

MR HUMPHRIES: He did say that, and that is not what the document suggests. It says that, if at the worst estimate there was a 30 per cent drop, this is the result that would occur. The 270,000 expected in the next financial year is based on this worst case scenario. There is no prediction about that. There could end up being no reduction in visitor numbers. Indeed, there could be an increase in visitor numbers. I would say that the likelihood of an increase in visitor numbers on that worst case scenario is greatly to be expected, given that since this was announced the Federal Government has announced the provision of $200,000 for a new visitor information centre. That, I think, will have an impact on visitor numbers.

Ms McRae asked me about concessions available to people entering Tidbinbilla. The concessions are available to pensioners, the unemployed and members of the Friends of Tidbinbilla group. The charge will be for the car. If you get an annual pass, your car registration number will be on the pass. If you are a pensioner or some other person who falls into the category of a concession and you own the car, then you can bring in people in your car - - -

Ms McRae: What if you do not want an annual pass?

MR HUMPHRIES: Let me finish. If you get people in the car who are not pensioners or are not entitled to a concession, that is good luck to you, as far as we are concerned.

Ms McRae: Yes, but that is for a yearly pass.

MR HUMPHRIES: It is a yearly pass; that is right.

Ms McRae: But what if you do not want a yearly pass?

MR HUMPHRIES: You can get a single entry ticket.

Ms McRae: Then is it for the driver or the car?

Mr Kaine: Mr Speaker, are we carrying on a little discussion here between the Minister and Ms McRae?

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .