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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 7 Hansard (24 June) . . Page.. 1959 ..

MRS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, I was actually quoting from the radio bulletin. Mr Berry was saying that businesses would take the profits and that the plan was full of holes, Mr Speaker. So, I am not putting any words into his mouth at all. Mr Speaker, if a business is profitable, it employs more people; if a business is not profitable, it has no option but to lay people off. It is actually quite simple, Mr Speaker. If businesses lose business - - -

Mr Berry: No; there is another one too: If businesses are profitable, they put more money in their pockets.

MRS CARNELL: Mr Berry said, "There is another one: They put money into their pockets", Mr Speaker. That is what he believes.

MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Berry will not interject and, Chief Minister, do not respond to him. You are answering Mrs Littlewood's question.

MRS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, every time he makes such a stupid comment, what can you say? If businesses are not profitable, they lay people off. If businesses lose business from the Federal Government or cannot increase their business, then they cannot employ more people. It is very simple, Mr Speaker. Given that it is now generally accepted that sustainable job growth in Canberra will come from the private sector - even those opposite have grudgingly admitted that - it is vital that small- and medium-sized businesses are profitable. We hope that the CanDeliver approach will assist that profitability by giving local businesses a greater chance of winning a share of Commonwealth outsourcing.

Mr Speaker, CanDeliver will be formed through an amendment to the Territory Owned Corporations Act which will be introduced later this week, and it will be bidding against other major corporations for Commonwealth contracts. It may not win these contracts, Mr Speaker; but we will certainly be giving it our best go to do so. This Government will be in there fighting for local businesses. We will be taking innovative approaches such as CanDeliver. We will not be knocking everything, as Mr Berry is so capable of doing. Mr Speaker, I will finish by making the comment, just as that radio bulletin did: A plan to keep outsourced jobs in Canberra came under fire by the Opposition. Shame, Mr Speaker!

MR CORBELL: Mr Speaker, my question without notice is to Mr Stefaniak in his capacity as Minister for Sport and Recreation.

Mr Berry: Use the white button if the card does not work.

MR SPEAKER: Would you be quiet, Mr Berry. Mr Corbell is trying to ask a question.

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