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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 7 Hansard (26 June) . . Page.. 2251 ..

MRS CARNELL (continuing):

I think those opposite have shown their true colours in this debate. They have shown that they would spend more money in government. They have said that they would spend more money on ACTION, public housing, education, health, children's services, family support, capital works, youth centres, mental health and disability services. Those are the areas that they said they would spend extra dollars on. Fine, Mr Speaker; they have indicated what they would do in government. Where would they get the money, Mr Speaker? From only two places - new taxes, taxes above those in New South Wales, or borrowings. I do not accept either of those approaches. I think the approach we have embarked on, in attempting to increase revenue where we can, in line with New South Wales, and decrease expenditure where we can under the current economic circumstances, and to have no new borrowings in the general government sector this year, is the appropriate approach.

Mr Speaker, those opposite are going to vote against this budget, yet they have come up with no alternatives. I have to say that in opposition we never opposed a budget. We accepted - - -

Mr Berry: Ha, ha, ha! You came up with some scatterbrain ideas.

MRS CARNELL: That is true; we never opposed a budget, because we accepted that the people of this city had a right to elect a government, a government that could get on with the job. We might not have agreed with the approach they took, but we never opposed a budget.

MR BERRY (6.50): What a swaggering braggart of a Chief Minister we have here in the ACT. What a terminal case of selective amnesia we have in this Chief Minister. Mr Speaker, Mrs Carnell must not have been listening during the course of the debate to hear the criticisms that were levelled at her management of the ACT economy. Mrs Carnell must not have heard the criticism of the extra $80m that has been put into Health since she became Health Minister.

Mrs Carnell: So, you would cut $80m out of Health.

MR BERRY: Mrs Carnell must not have heard the criticism of her for her $30m worth of savings out of Health.

Mrs Carnell: So, you would cut $80m out of Health.

MR BERRY: Of course, Mrs Carnell, when you add this up, this is a $110m credibility gap that you have.

Mrs Carnell: Okay. So, you would cut $80m out of Health.

MR SPEAKER: Order!

MR BERRY: Mrs Carnell, we are halfway there now. You talked about the $200m operating loss. We are halfway there and we have only just started. Mrs Carnell must not have heard about the criticism over the $3m or $5m, depending on whose estimates you look at, that was wasted in the industrial dispute here in the ACT. Was there no

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